DANVILLE — The Cardiac and Pulmonary Rehabilitation program at Hendricks Regional Health here has been helping patients for the past 15 years.

The program started in a one-patient room at the hospital, and has since moved to its current home, which is a much larger facility with a variety of exercise equipment and a full nursing staff.

The cardiac portion of the program is for people who have had heart bypass surgery, heart attacks, or any heart-related illness. The pulmonary program is for those at risk for lung disease, or who have experienced problems like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), emphysema, asthma, pulmonary fibrosis, and primary pulmonary hypertension.

Registered nurse Jan Hesler has been working with cardiac patients for about the last 10 years, and explained that the center sees both inpatients and outpatients at a variety of stages in their health. Inpatients who are currently in the hospital with heart problems receive education and activity. Outpatients are those with stints, heart monitors, or who have had past problems, who are treated by registered nurses and exercise physiologists to help treat their risk factors and modify things like their diet, smoking, and stress levels.

Hesler said the most rewarding part of her job is seeing how her patients’ quality of life improves after a heart attack or other problem, and seeing them regain confidence, strength, and learning to cope with stress. She said she also likes helping people learn that exercise is a life-long habit.

On average, most patients at the rehab center are about 65, but Hesler said ages range from the 40s to late 80s. Most insurance companies and Medicare cover treatment for between four and 12 weeks. After the initial treatment, a maintenance program is available for patients to come in and exercise and have their blood pressure and pulse monitored, which costs $5 a session. She said most come in between one and three times a week to use the equipment, which includes treadmills, stationary bikes, steps, and weights, for one-hour sessions.

One patient who has been coming to the rehab center for the past 12 years is Harlan Leimenstroll, 83, of Danville. He originally came because he felt pressure in his chest and his doctor said he had had two heart attacks, even though he says he never felt them. The doctor recommended that Leimenstroll go to the rehab center, and since then he has been alternating between the different stages of care because he also has had a heart-related operation and then a triple-bypass surgery.

Hesler said Leimenstroll is known at the center as the “miracle man.” Besides coming for twice-weekly exercise sessions, he also volunteers as a clinical attendant, doing everything from pushing patients in wheelchairs, transporting them, and assisting in the labs.

The retired air traffic controller has always led an active life, as he served as a pilot in World War II with the Army Air Corps and in the Korean War with the Air Force.

He said he believes that he recovered so well and so quickly from the bypass, which was in 2005, because he had been exercising regularly.

“I’ve met the most wonderful people,” he said about his experiences at the hospital. “It’s a real blessing.”

Another patient who has benefited from the rehab center is Butch O’Neal of Avon. He has been coming for three years.

O’Neal said that as a result of the pulmonary program, he feels much better and has noticeably improved health. He said he finds it much easier to work out at the center than at home.

“It’s like one big family,” he said.

Anyone who has been treated for heart or pulmonary illnesses can use the program, even if they were treated at a different hospital. Patients need to obtain a doctor’s note, which the nurses at the rehab center can assist with.

“We’re seeing doctors become more proactive with referring patients to rehab after treating and releasing them,” Hesler said.

For more information about the cardiac rehabilitation program, call 745-3703. For more information about the pulmonary rehabilitation program, call 745-3580.



lindsay.jones@flyergroup.com