McKee Medical Center plans activities for American Heart Month

LOVELAND, Colo. (Jan. 27, 2009) – McKee Medical Center has organized weekly activities for the public throughout February in recognition of American Heart Month.

Loveland area residents can learn more about the importance of living a heart-healthy lifestyle by attending an upcoming cooking class, learning about heart failure, exploring heart healthy exercises and participating in National Wear Red Day.

“This is a great opportunity to reach out to people in our community and alert them to their personal risk factors for heart disease,” said Charlie Schneider, director of cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation at McKee Medical Center.

National Wear Red Day, Friday, Feb. 6, is held to promote awareness of heart disease among women. Heart disease is the No. 1 killer of women in the United States.

Although significant progress has been made in increasing awareness among women from 34 percent in 2000 to 57 percent in 2006, most women fail to make the connection between risk factors and their personal risk of developing heart disease.

Living Successfully with Heart Failure, an educational question and answer session with a nurse practitioner from the Heart Failure Clinic and a disease management program coordinator, will be Tuesday, Feb. 10 from 10 to 11 a.m. at the McKee Conference and Wellness Center.

Heart Healthy Cooking will be demonstrated by dietitian Elizabeth Long, on Monday, Feb. 16 from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. She will show how to plan and prepare heart healthy foods.

In addition, Long will show participants how they can eat heart healthy on a budget. “With the current economic situation, I want people to know that cooking and eating well for your heart do not have to be expensive.”

Cardiac Rehabilitation and Heart Watchers will have an open house Feb. 24 from 2 to 4 p.m. Former program participants, friends and family as well as other people interested in learning about cardiac exercises are invited. The open house will be in the cardiac rehab gym. In addition, McKee Wellness Services will provide free blood pressure screenings and, for $8, cholesterol screenings.

These activities are open to the public. No registration is required. For more information about any of these activities, please call 635-4031.

Cardiovascular diseases, including stroke, are our nation’s No. 1 killer. Since 1963, Congress has required the president to proclaim February American Heart Month to urge Americans to join the battle against these illnesses.

McKee Medical Center offers excellent technology combined with compassionate care in the treatment of heart disease. McKee provides heart programs that not only focus on intervention but also address wellness and rehabilitation. McKee has diagnostic procedures and services, non-surgical treatment, telemetry services and cardiac rehabilitation.

The new CardioVascular Institute clinic at McKee Medical Center provides comprehensive, state-of-the art cardiovascular services. The clinic, which opened in 2008, provides inpatient and outpatient diagnostic services including EKG, stress testing and emergency chest pain consultation. Heart catheterization and electrophysiology procedures are also available through the clinic.

Open heart surgery and other high-risk interventional procedures are available through McKee’s sister facility, North Colorado Medical Center, and patients can schedule follow-up appointments and rehabilitation close to home in Loveland.

To make an appointment, call (970) 203-2400.

Sidebar:
Banner Health and McKee Medical Center provide online education and health calculators to help people learn about heart disease and assess their own risk factors. Visit www.bannerhealth.com and use the following Keywords:

• Heart Recipes
• McKee Heart Care
• Heart Check