Cardiac Rehabilitation
Penrose Hospital Cardiac Rehabilitation helps people recovering from a heart attack, valve or bypass surgery, stent implant or other heart problem.
About
Rehabilitation helps prepare you physically, mentally and emotionally for return to work and normal family and social life. It also helps you slowly and safely get back to normal activities. Our therapists talk to you about changes you can make to help reduce your risk of more heart problems. A physician referral is required for cardiac rehabilitation.
Cardiac rehabilitation can:
- Increase your chances of surviving a heart attack or other heart problem
- Increase your ability to be active and exercise
- Help you return to work sooner
- Help you get back to a normal lifestyle
- Improve overall health and well-being
Our Services
The cardiac rehabilitation program at Penrose Hospital includes a variety of services to support individual healing related to cardiac events and conditions.
Our teams manage all elements of inpatient and outpatient cardiac rehabilitation, pulmonary rehab, the respected Ornish Lifestyle Medicine™ program and long-term fitness goal-setting.
Cardiac Rehabilitation
Cardiac rehabilitation is our comprehensive education and exercise program designed to improve your cardiovascular health and quality of life while recovering from a cardiovascular event.
Cardiac Rehabilitation Phase I provides educational services for patients hospitalized at Penrose Hospital and St- Francis Medical Center for open heart surgery, congestive heart failure, myocardial infarction, and other diagnoses related to coronary artery disease.
Trained cardiac rehab nurses and exercise physiologists provide patients and family members with education about recovery, activity, and coronary artery risk factor modification.
Cardiac Rehabilitation Phase II is designed primarily for patients with a diagnosis of coronary artery disease, open-heart surgery, recent myocardial infarction, angioplasty, stent, or stable angina. This comprehensive program offers prescribed cardiovascular exercise, risk factor modification, education, ongoing nursing assessment, and referral to nutritionist and behavioral intervention based on individual need.
This multifaceted program is designed to limit the adverse physiologic and psychological effects of cardiac illness, reduce risk of sudden death or reinfarction, control cardiac symptoms, stabilize the atherosclerotic process and enhance the patient's psychosocial and vocational status. Cardiac Rehabilitation Phase II Program is reimbursed by Medicare and most other payers.
Outpatient cardiac rehabilitation is offered at Audubon Medical Campus and St. Francis Medical Center. For more information on outpatient cardiac rehabilitation, talk to your doctor for a referral.
Individuals who graduate from outpatient cardiac rehab are invited and encouraged to stay active with us for life. We will will help you enroll in Commit to Fit program (a program approved by Silver Sneakers and ReNew Active) to promote continued cardiovascular, strength, balance and flexibility training.
The Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation Program at Penrose Hospital is proud to be certified by the American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation (AACVPR). Our program was recognized for its commitment to improving the quality of life by enhancing standards of care.
We participated in the one month application process which requires extensive documentation of the program's practices. The AACVPR Program Certification is the only peer-reviewed accreditation process designed to review individual programs for adherence to standards and guidelines developed and published by the AACVPR and other professional societies.
Each program is reviewed by the AACVPR National Certification Committee and certification is awarded by the AACVPR Board of Directors. Certified AACVPR programs are recognized as leaders in the field of cardiovascular and pulmonary rehabilitation because they offer the most advanced practices available. AACVPR Program Certification is valid for three years.
Commit to Fit
The Commit to Fit program is an exercise program that promotes the benefits of cardiovascular, strength training, balance training, and flexibility training. It focuses on educating and encouraging regular exercise. Additionally, it allows participants to exercise in a safe environment.
Commit to Fit offers a large variety of cardiovascular and strength training equipment appropriate for all functional and fitness ranges. Equipment includes treadmills, Nusteps®, bicycles, arm ergometers, seated ellipticals, hand weights, stretch bands and more.
The program is staffed and supervised by the Penrose-St. Francis Cardiac and Pulmonary Rehabilitation staff, which includes Registered Nurses, Exercise Specialists, Exercise Physiologists, and Respiratory Therapists.
Participants will have the ability to monitor their heart rates, blood pressures, oxygen saturations, and utilize supplemental oxygen if needed. And, have access to instructor-led exercise classes focusing on strength training, stretching, and cardiovascular exercise throughout the day.
- Strengthens your heart and cardiovascular system
- Reduces blood pressure
- Reduces your risk for heart disease, diabetes, and other conditions
- Improves diabetes management
- Promotes weight loss
- Improves your lungs and breathing ability
- Strengthens your muscles and improves daily functioning
- Reduces risk of falling
- Reduces risk of Alzheimer’s disease and helps with emotional conditions
Our program is open to the public. People with cardiovascular, pulmonary, or diabetic concerns are strongly encouraged to talk to your doctor, or our friendly staff, about how to get started.
Eligibility criteria includes:
- Participants will need a simple order from their doctor to get started.
- Assistance is available, but participants should be able to transfer independently to equipment, and walk independently or provide their own assistance getting to the program.
- $ 25 per month
- Silver Sneakers Approved Facility
- Renew Active/ One Pass approved facility
- Tuesdays and Thursdays from 7 a.m. – 3:45 p.m. (various 1-hour sessions)
- Call (719) 776-4880 for specific hours, as times are subject to change based on volume.
Penrose-St. Francis Cardiac and Pulmonary Rehabilitation
Audubon Medical Campus
3030 N. Circle Dr., Suite 217
Colorado Springs, CO 80909
(719) 776-4880 phone
(719) 776-4866 fax
Ornish Lifestyle Medicine™
The Penrose Hospital Heart & Vascular Center’s cardiac rehabilitation program is proud to offer Ornish Lifestyle Medicine™ – the first and only program that is scientifically proven to slow, stop, and even reverse the progression of heart disease.
This intensive cardiac rehabilitation program brings about its life-changing results by helping participants adopt and sustain lifestyle changes in four areas of their lives:
- What they eat
- How active they are
- How they respond to stress
- How much love & support they have in their lives.
By optimizing these four elements, the program empowers them to minimize their reliance on medications, avoid future surgeries, and most importantly, re-take control of their health.
The program is scientifically proven to:
- Reduce the risk of heart-related events
- Decrease the frequency and severity of chest discomfort
- Lower the likelihood of future surgery
- Lessen dependence on medications
- Lower cholesterol, improve blood pressure, and bring about weight loss
- Increase your capacity for exercise
Ornish Care Specialist
Penrose-St. Francis Ornish Lifestyle Medicine Program
719-776-4880
Pulmonary Rehabilitation
The Penrose Hospital Pulmonary Rehabilitation Program helps people with moderate to severe breathing problems overcome physical limitations resulting from their disease.
Candidates for the program include those experiencing lung problems such as:
- Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
- Emphysema
- Chronic bronchitis
- Asthma
- Bronchiectasis
- Sarcoidosis
- Pulmonary hypertension
- Pulmonary fibrosis
- Interstitial lung disease
- Lung cancer and lung cancer surgery
- Lung volume reduction surgery before and after lung transplantation
Each patient’s program begins with a comprehensive pulmonary evaluation by clinical experts in pulmonary rehabilitation. Through a carefully planned, integrated and individualized program of supervised physical conditioning, exercise and educational and nutritional counseling, physical capacity is increased and the patient is empowered to overcome their shortness of breath.
Medical evaluation
A comprehensive medical evaluation is conducted by our pulmonary rehabilitation team, then an individualized program is developed based on their findings.
Monitored and supervised exercise
People with pulmonary disease often limit physical activity because they are frightened they will become short of breath; lack of activity, however, reduces muscle strength and causes weakness. Our pulmonary rehabilitation program includes exercises and activities tailored to your needs to help participants increase physical capacity and regain control of breathing. By combining exercise with other services patients improve their abilities to carry out activities of daily living with more energy and less difficulty.
Educational programs
Our education classes focus on COPD and other chronic lung diseases providing you with information about:
- Medications, including drug action, side effects, using an inhaler, and self-care techniques
- Understanding and using oxygen therapy
- Diet, nutrition, and weight management
- Breathing retraining
- Importance of exercise
- Strategies for managing breathing problems
- Symptom assessment to know about when to seek medical treatment
Psychosocial support
People who have chronic lung diseases are more prone to depression, anxiety and other emotional problems. Our program offers counseling referrals from a variety of sources.
While not a cure for lung disease, pulmonary rehabilitation helps improve your quality of life. You may notice improved breathing effort and fewer breathing problems.
Additional benefits include:
- Reduce and control breathing difficulties and other symptoms
- Gain knowledge about your disease, treatment options, and chronic disease coping strategies
- Learn to manage your disease and reduce dependence on costly medical resources
- Maintain healthy behaviors such as smoking cessation, good nutrition and exercise
- Function better in your daily life
- Improve your ability to exercise
- Better manage and reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression
A physician referral is needed to participate in the pulmonary rehabilitation program. Talk to your doctor to find out if pulmonary rehabilitation is right for you.
For more information about the pulmonary rehabilitation program, contact us at:
Audubon Medical Campus
3030 N. Circle Drive, Suite 215
Colorado Springs, CO 80909
719-776-4880
