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Heart disease is the leading cause of death for men, women, and people of most racial and ethnic groups in the United States. Meet the UVA Health Cardiac Rehabilitation Services Prince Wiliam team — dedicated to helping our patients improve cardiovascular health following a cardiac event or procedure.

UVA Health Cardiac Rehab Services Prince William is certified through the American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation (AACVPR), the only peer-reviewed accreditation process that reviews facilities for adherence to industry-leading standards.

Jane Coppage serves as Clinic Administrator, Cardiology and UVA Health Prince William Medical Center Cardiac Rehab, and LeAnn McCusker, CSCS, is Exercise Physiologist for UVA Health Prince William Medical Center Cardiac Rehab:

What does Cardiac Rehab do?

The Cardiac Rehab team implements individualized treatment plans for patients following a major cardiovascular event or procedure such as cardiac surgery, heart attack, failure, or transplant. People think of it as physical therapy, but cardiac rehab is a full lifestyle education program that teaches people not only about exercise and how to exercise safely, but also nutrition and managing stress, medication, and their personal risk factors for heart disease such as inactivity, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, diabetes, weight management, and smoking cessation. Finally, the program teaches people how to go about the necessary behavior changes for a healthier lifestyle.

Who makes up your team?

Our multidisciplinary team includes:

• LeAnn McCusker, CSCS, Exercise Physiologist
• Jasmine Morton, Exercise Physiologist
• Pallavi Dharamsi, Registered Dietitian
• Ernie Cepillo, RN
• Renee Evans, CCRP, RN
• Madel Majillo, RN
• Judy Pohodich, RN
• Donna Daniels, Office Coordinator
• Ara Maranian, MD, Medical Director

What is the typical patient experience with Cardiac Rehab?

Patients come to us from UVA Health, but also from elsewhere in the community and other cardiologists outside our system. Most stay with us 12-14 weeks, which provides adequate time for them to learn all we need to cover, build new lifestyle habits, and regain their confidence.

During orientation, patients complete assessments that survey their diet, depression, and physical activity levels; quality of life; and knowledge about a heart-healthy lifestyle. At the end of the program, they complete the assessments again, and we review their changes and improvements. Most patients see improvement in most if not all areas assessed, and sometimes, patients are shocked at how far they have come!

We grow close to our patients throughout their time here, and they have an opportunity to stay on for a maintenance program where they can continue to exercise here, but don’t wear a telemetry monitor anymore or report on their outcomes. This has really helped our patients build community with us and other people who have gone through the same or a similar experience.

For example, we have a group of men who come in at 7:30 a.m. every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. They have created a good friendship, love to joke and tease each other — but they also hold each other accountable. We have lots of groups like that who have created great friendships. It helps them feel a part of something, like they’re being healthy, and doing something good for themselves.

What does a typical day look like for Cardiac Rehab?

Each of our patients has their individualized treatment plan renewed every four weeks. So, a typical day starts with seeing who needs their plan reviewed and renewed. We divvy those up among team members, then review those plans and their progress one-on-one with patients.

The rest of the day we spend monitoring patients on the telemetry monitor, which continuously monitors and records their heart rate and rhythm while exercising, getting their blood pressure, checking blood sugars before and after exercising for diabetic patients, and counseling them on changes and improvements they can make.

Each Wednesday, we have education for patients on a different topic. We have six classes throughout the day where we watch videos, and have discussions and handouts on numerous topics related to exercise, medication safety, nutrition, and more.

And, we just have fun and try to make it a friendly atmosphere!

What do you love most about what you do?

A lot of the patients we see are in a state of shock when they come to us and are very nervous to start exercising again. Seeing them go through the program, rebuild their confidence, and get back to exercising and a healthy lifestyle after a major event like a heart attack is pretty rewarding for us.

A theme we see with our patients is that they go through the program, gain their confidence back, and then help build confidence in new patients. Our patients help each other as much as we help them.

Once they’ve learned for themselves how important this program is, they get to a point where they support the other patients coming through. Their outlook on life is so renewed, and their appreciation of being alive is inspiring for all of us!