Cardiac & Police Project

Cardiac Rehabilitation 

Research in the Sport & Exercise Science department, conducted by Dr Chelsea Batty, focuses on the area of cardiac rehabilitation. Cardiac rehabilitation is an evidenced based treatment aimed at rehabilitating those who are suffering from cardiovascular disease. Patients who are referred to cardiac rehabilitation are prescribed to complete supervised exercise sessions where they are required to exercise for at least 20 minutes at 40-70% of their heart rate reserve. Dr Batty’s research, including her doctoral research project, has explored patient adherence to cardiac rehabilitation programmes. Patient attendance to rehabilitation programmes has largely been impacted by funding issues and lack of resources.

Dr Batty’s current research is examining whether providing cardiac rehabilitation patients with digital videos before starting their rehabilitation programme will provide useful to patients by giving them knowledge on how to exercise correctly, safely and for the right amount of time and at the right intensity not only during supervised exercise sessions but during their habitual time. The project is also exploring if the digital videos make patients feel more comfortable with exercise and improve confidence that they can meet the prescribed exercise targets from the outset, given that suffering from a cardiac event can place unwanted stress and anxiety on patients.