Dr. Priya gives Invited Faculty Talk at JIPMER

The accurate diagnosis and adequate management of inherited cardiac conditions or cardiogenetic diseases is gaining importance in India. These are rare but lethal diseases that can cause sudden cardiac arrest and death in the young and healthy individuals. Early identification and medical, surgical or device treatment is known to prevent death in the majority of affected persons.

Dr. Priya Chockalingam was glad to share the latest developments and her clinical experience in this rapidly evolving field of genetics and genomics in Cardiology with the faculty and students at JIPMER in Pondicherry on 4 May 2018.

 

World Health Day Medical Camp April 2018

This World Health Day (7th April) Cardiac Wellness Institute has moved one step closer to its “Health for All” mission by conducting a Medical Camp from 5th-8th April 2018 (7 to 9 am) at the Elliot’s Beach in Besant Nagar, Chennai.

The parameters tested were:

  • Height, Weight
  • Body Mass Index
  • Blood Pressure
  • Blood Sugar
  • Cholesterol
  • Hemoglobin

Each participant sponsored the tests for an under-privileged person from of the Urur Olcott Kuppam in the vicinity of the beach.

The camp participants had an opportunity to meet the Doctor, Physiotherapist and Dietician at Cardiac Wellness Institute to learn about how to modify their lifestyle for a healthy life ahead.

The Healthy Ageing Program: To make our seniors fitter and healthier

As part of our heart-health awareness campaign, Cardiac Wellness Institute is launching a program for senior citizens (men and women 60 years of age and older) to enlighten and equip them with skills for being fit and healthyThe Healthy Ageing Program commenced with a free introductory session on 25 January 2018. Several seniors attended the session and interacted fruitfully.  The weekly exercise and education classes will begin on 9 February 2018. The components included in the program are Doctor Consultation, Supervised Exercise, Nutrition Advice, Group Education and Counselling.

Please call +9144 43192828 or +91 9940408828 or send an email to info@cardiacwellnessinstitute.com for further details and registration in the program. Thanks to television media for carrying the news clip!

Health awareness workshops conducted for Faculty of academic institutions

The healthcare team of Cardiac Wellness Institute conducted health awareness workshops for the Faculty of Loyola College, Chennai and Holy Cross College, Trichy on 12 and 13 of December 2017 respectively. The workshops lasted for 2.5 hours each and focused on various aspects of prevention and rehabilitation of cardiac and other chronic ailments through healthy lifestyle choices.

The feedback on the workshops was excellent and the Faculty were keen on more health related programs of this nature.

The 1st National Conference on Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation a big hit

The need for an interdisciplinary approach for the prevention of heart and lung diseases was the theme of the 2 day conference

In the wake of the World Heart Day which falls on 29 September, the 1st National Conference on Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation was held at the Tamilnadu Dr. MGR Medical University on 23 & 24 September 2017. Cardiac Wellness Institute and the MGR Medical University jointly conducted the conference. The aim was to make healthcare professionals aware about the latest scientific developments in the field of prevention and rehabilitation of heart and lung disorders, which are the biggest threats to India and other developing countries today. The message that teamwork and collaboration amongst the different healthcare disciplines is very important in providing comprehensive services to the patients was the key message of the Conference.

The fact that regular exercise, a balanced healthy diet, mental wellbeing and avoiding tobacco and alcohol are the key lifestyle factors in the prevention of premature death was stressed by Prof. Dr. V. Chockalingam, Emeritus Professor of Cardiology and the Scientific Chairman of the Conference. “The need for widespread implementation of personalized cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation programs for individuals with heart and lung diseases is the need of the hour to reduce complications and improve quality of life” said Prof. Dr. S. Shanmugasundaram, a leading Cardiologist in Chennai. Mrs. Saras Bhaskar, counseling psychologist and founding member of Chennai Counselor’s Foundation, outlined the importance of addressing the psychosocial issues like stress, anxiety and depression while treating patients with heart problems.

Other notable Faculty were Dr. Madan Mohan, Dr. T. R. Muralidharan, Dr. R. Anantharaman, Dr. A. Ajeet  and Dr. Cecily Mary Majella (Cardiologists), Dr. R. Mohan (Cardiothoracic Surgeon), Dr. Kannan Pugazhendi (Sports Physician), Dr. I. Ramya (Internal Medicine), Dr. Bhuvaneshwari, Dr. Meenakshi Bajaj and Dr. Vinitha Krishnan (Dieticians), Dr. Vijayasaratha and Dr. Raja Amarnath (Pulmonologists) and Dr. Mathangi Ramprasad, Dr. Keerthi Pai and Dr. E. Vidhubala (Psychologists). Dr. Anand Chockalingam (Cardiologist, USA) and Dr. Aashish Contractor (Cardiac Rehab, Mumbai) shared their ideas via video presentation.

The delegates hailed from various fields including Medicine, Physiotherapy, Nutrition & Dietetics, Psychology and Nursing. There was a Poster session, a Quiz competition and a few workshops to provide hands-on training to the participants on the methodology of cardiopulmonary rehabilitation.

Dr. Priya Chockalingam, the Organizing Secretary of the Conference and the Clinical Director of Cardiac Wellness Institute, was happy to see the enthusiasm and the thirst for knowledge. She highlighted in her talk that educating and counseling the patients and their family members about the disease will go a long way in helping them make appropriate lifestyle changes.

 

 

Cardiac Wellness Institute partners with premier hospitals

Cardiac Wellness Institute, established as a pioneer in cardiopulmonary rehabilitation in South India, partners with premier heart care centres like Fortis Malar Hospital and Frontier Lifeline Hospital to make these services widely available to patients.

With the incidence of lifestyle diseases like diabetes, hypertension, cholesterol abnormalities, heart attack and stroke rapidly rising, we are joining hands with the public, medical professionals and policymakers to control and cure disease as effectively as possible.

Participants endorse our heart-health workshops

A series of workshops were held between January and July 2017 to increase awareness about prevention of heart diseases by healthy lifestyle. Men and women of all ages and walks of life participated enthusiastically and gave positive feedback.

Dr. Anand Chockalingam (Associate Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine, University of Missouri, Columbia, USA),  the Chief Guest at the bootcamp held on 22 July, stressed the importance of gratitude on a minute-by-minute basis. He also encouraged the participants to involve themselves passionately and wholeheartedly in their daily activities.

“We have learnt how to incorporate simple health-promoting practices in our everyday life” said a couple who attended the full-day workshop at Cardiac Wellness Institute in January 2017. 

“My mind was filled with fear and doubts about my health ever since my bypass surgery. The program has helped me overcome those fears and look ahead to a happier and healthier life” said a 74 year old gentleman after attending the bootcamp in July 2017.

Team Cardiac Wellness Institute is glad to be providing the much-needed education and awareness to our people.

Our work features in leading medical journals

The prevention and rehabilitation programs at Cardiac Wellness Institute have produced excellent results in our patients.

Heart Asia, a leading medical journal of the BMJ group has recently published the outcomes, such as decrease in body weight, increase in exercise capacity and improvement in angina and health related behaviour, in South Indians who followed our programs. This is a landmark study as it is the first scientific evidence showing that a holistic exercise-cum-education strategy works in our population.

Indian Heart Journal has carried two of our publications detailing the importance of prevention programs and intensive cardiac rehabilitation in our country.