You will likely speak to a number of different people within the cardiac rehabilitation team. Below will hopefully give you some insight into the members of our team and what we do.
Admin assistants
Our admin assistants support every aspect of the community cardiology team. They help to process referrals into the service and support with communication with letters. They support with the triaging of patients, and you may speak to them on the phone if you ring in. They are the back bone of our service.
Cardiac Rehabilitation assistants
Cardiac rehab assistants are level 3 trained healthcare professionals who have completed their care certificate. They may be the first person you have contact with if you are referred to Cardiac Rehab. They will phone you to book your initial consultation and will give advice and support relating to your cardiac condition. You may also see them at exercise programmes supporting with classes and completing clinical assessments.
Cardiac rehabilitation assistant practitioner
Our Cardiac rehab assistant practitioner bridge the gap between cardiac rehab assistants and nurses. They support with the running of exercise programmes as well as speaking to patients on triage and providing patient support. Our Cardiac rehab assistant practitioner also supports with the running of our current projects and service development, attending conferences and bringing back new development ideas.
Cardiac Rehabilitation specialist nurses
The Cardiac rehab specialist nurses’ team are based around the county and will be there to guide you through your cardiac rehabilitation pathway. Our team comes from a variety of different nursing backgrounds including cardiac surgery, coronary care settings and community care. All nurses have completed Cardiac Rehabilitation accredited courses. All our nurses have different interests, some have completed additional courses in Diabetes management, heart failure or non-medical prescribing.
Cardiac exercise practitioners
Our Cardiac exercise practitioners are experts in delivering safe and effective exercise to patients. They are qualified in specific exercise programmes suitable for cardiac rehabilitation. Some of our exercise practitioners have previously worked with complex health conditions and local authorities or have completed masters degrees in Cardiac Rehabilitation. They have a wealth of knowledge and experience in order to support you on your exercise journey. You will either see the exercise practitioners at a face to face exercise programme or speak with them on the phone if you need tailored advice to support you getting back to your chosen sport.
Exercise Physiologists
Our exercise physiologist works alongside the exercise practitioners to deliver exercise programmes to patients. They also provide expert advice and assessments over the phone and also work around the county when needed. The exercise physiologists may regularly be in contact to discuss recovery and exercise from a rehab and heart failure perspective if required. If you are not returning to sport, but need some support to return to daily living activities, exercise physiologists may also be able to support you to do this with tailored exercise plans.
Physiotherapists
Our Cardiac rehabilitation specialist physiotherapists lead the exercise team to support the delivery of exercise programmes. They are experienced in physiotherapy and prescribing specific exercises to support aspects of recovery to our most complex patients, whether through previous injury or other health conditions.
Cardiac rehabilitation team lead
Our Cardiac rehab team leads support the other members of the team with the daily running of the service. They provide specialist support to members of the team who have complex queries. The team leads ensure governance and collaboration of services within the Lincolnshire network, linking in with the integrated care system. The continue to work on service development based upon feedback and data to ensure we are meeting national targets.