Over 1,800 heart patients, including many with life-threatening conditions, are having to wait up to six months for vital cardiac rehabilitation, a new survey has revealed.

Cardiac rehabilitation is a medically supervised programme aimed at helping patients with heart problems to recover quickly and improve their overall mental, physical and social functioning.

These services, which have been credited with cutting the rate of heart disease in Ireland by more than 25%, involve a multidisciplinary team, including a doctor, social worker, psychologist, dietician and occupational therapist.

However, according to a survey by the Irish Association of Cardiac Rehabilitation (IACR) and the Irish Heart Foundation (IHF), there are ‘serious deficits' in these services nationwide.

There are 37 cardiac rehab services around the country and 36 responded to the survey. However, none of these 36 had all the expertise required to provide the service, largely as a result of staffing cuts.

For example, more than 50% of the services were missing at least four of the 10 staff needed to deliver proper cardiac rehabilitation.

Twenty-nine of the units surveyed had no access to social workers, 27 had no access to psychology staff and 26 had no access to occupational therapists.

Meanwhile, in almost 25% of services, nurses working there have been transferred for periods of time to work in other areas.

Furthermore, reductions in staff numbers mean that staff are finding it increasingly difficult to follow up on patients after they have finished the hospital-based programme.

"This survey exposes the impact of sustained cutbacks in cardiac rehabilitation and how these now threaten its long-term viability. Cardiac rehab is vital to thousands of patients coping with the physical and psychological impacts of heart attacks and heart surgery. But it is being treated almost like an optional service and that needs to change," insisted IACR president, Dr Charles McCreery.

He noted that there is a major difference in the time various staff can dedicate to cardiac rehab services. For example, while four services had a full-time dietician, one service had access to a dietician for just four hours per month.

Dr McCreery noted that these services saw 500 more patients in 2012 compared to 2010, with 4,500 patients looking for hospital-based rehab last year.

"This increase in the number of patients is to be welcomed but as the survey shows, the sustained cutbacks in cardiac rehabilitation threaten the long-term viability of this vital service," he said.

Also commenting on this issue, Dr Angie Brown, medical director of the IHF, emphasised that cardiac rehabilitation is ‘very effective in improving patients' quality of life, confidence and longevity'.

"It is a vital service for patients with heart disease and is literally a second chance at life for many people after heart attack. Patients who have suffered from heart attacks are at higher risk of having another event and we know that cardiac rehab plays an essential role in overcoming fear while instilling confidence to take steps to prevent a recurrence," she explained.

However, this survey reveals that cutbacks ‘are threatening the future of many cardiac rehabilitation services'.
She said this will impact on patients who have already been through serious medical procedures.

"Our health service should be providing the resources to ensure that these patients can return to their own lives with confidence, rather than continuing to rely on hospital services," Dr Brown added.

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