Cardiac Rehabilitation Project launched at Beijing United Family Rehabilitation Hospital

Gaining a Fresh Start with Cardiac Rehabilitation

As an important part of the 24th Great Wall International Congress of Cardiology (GWICC), hosted by the Cardiovascular Branch of the Chinese Medical Association, Cardiac Rehabilitation Branch of the Chinese Association of Rehabilitation Medicine, and Beijing United Family Rehabilitation Hospital, the Cardiac Rehabilitation Project launch ceremony and press conference was held at the National Conference Center on October 12, 2013. Dr. Hu Dayi, Chair of GWICC and Chair of Cardiac Rehabilitation Branch of the Chinese Association of Rehabilitation Medicine, Dr. Li Jianan, Executive Vice President of Chinese Association Of Rehabilitation Medicine, Sylvia Pan, Vice President of United Family Healthcare and General Manager of Beijing United Family Hospital & Clinics, and Wendy Huang, General Manager of Beijing United Family Rehabilitation Hospital, attended the press conference. The event included several speeches and a Q&A with the media and guests on medical integration, continuity of medical services, and cardiac rehabilitation.

For patients who suffer from cardiovascular disease, cardiac rehabilitation can not only reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, but also help recover physical and mental energy and assist in social adaptation. A meta-analysis including 63 randomized trials shows that the incidence of myocardial infarction is reduced by 17% over 12 months and by 47% over two years after a patient begins cardiac rehabilitation. The efficacy of rehabilitation is similar to or even greater than drugs or other interventional methods. In view of this, most developed countries include cardiac rehabilitation in clinical guidelines recommendations. The American College of Cardiology Foundation, the American Heart Association, and the American Medical Association–Physician Consortium for Performance Improvement all suggest that patients with chronic stable angina and acute myocardial infarction, or patients who have undergone bypass surgery, coronary intervention, heart valve surgery, or a heart transplant should include cardiac rehabilitation in their treatment and recovery strategies.

After over a year of preparation lead by Dr. Hu Dayi, the Cardiac Rehabilitation Project at Beijing United Family Rehabilitation Hospital officially launched. As one of the important departments of the hospital, it is also part of the Cardiac Rehabilitation Center of Beijing United Family Hospital, and an extension of the general, cardiovascular, cardiac surgery, and cardiac rehabilitation services. The project’s launch not only is the official start of cardiac rehabilitation services, but also marks United Family Healthcare’s formal establishment of a “Full Heart” service. In addition, a cardiac rehabilitation training program under the aegis of the Cardiac Rehabilitation Branch of Chinese Association of Rehabilitation Medicine will work closely with Beijing United Family Rehabilitation Hospital. As a result, cardiac rehabilitation services will include first-class assessment and training equipment including treadmills with central ECG monitoring. The hospital also hired top domestic specialists to work alongside physicians and therapists from Taiwan and Germany. These clinicians will setup and maintain international standards for all rehabilitation programs. The hospital will be at the forefront of standardized medical evaluation and individualized cardiac rehabilitation, as well as act as a resource for furthering cardiac rehabilitation expertise and training physicians.

The growing importance and influence of cardiac rehabilitation cannot be underestimated. Increasingly patients will enjoy the benefits from cardiac rehabilitation to achieve a much healthier heart to regain a high quality of life and a fresh start on life.