Cardiac Rehabilitation

The cardiac rehab specialists at University of Maryland Capital Region Health offer one-on-one support and assistance to help you make healthy, lifestyle changes for patients who have had a heart attack, heart surgery or who are living with heart disease.

Cardiac rehab helps you learn what activities are safe for your heart, lower your risk of future heart problems, recover faster, and reduce stress.

Your recovery is a team effort. We offer a medically supervised program that’s designed around your needs and goals. Your team works closely with your doctors (primary care and heart care doctors) throughout the program, and registered nurses monitor your progress to ensure your health, safety and well-being 

Rehab includes:

• Exercise counseling and training: Learn how to improve your cardiovascular and muscular fitness safely, with guidance from exercise specialists.
• Education for a heart-healthy lifestyle: Learn how to manage your risk factors, eat well, quit smoking, reduce stress and incorporate healthy habits into your lifestyle.
• Personal support: You benefit from a team of professionals who can give you the support you need to make positive lifestyle changes, including dietitians, behavioral health specialists (social workers, psychologists) and spiritual advisors.

Cardiac Rehab Treatment Program

The program includes different phases. You’ll move to the next phase based on your progress.

Phase I (1-3 days)

Your rehabilitation begins while you’re still in the hospital. You learn about your condition and risk factors, and what to expect in the coming weeks. 

Phase II (6-12 weeks)

During this phase, you learn about exercise and what’s appropriate for you. You begin supervised exercise while your heartbeat is monitored with an electrocardiogram (EKG). Your rehab team helps you learn how to reduce heart disease risk and how to adopt healthy behaviors, such as eating a heart-healthy diet, managing stress and more. 

Final Phase

Depending on your progress, the remaining exercise portion of the program may be conducted under medical supervision or without monitoring, on your own. Your team focuses on helping you learn how to maintain the healthy habits you’ve learned — to lower your risk of future heart problems — for the rest of your life.