Heart Support Australia (HSA) has opened a Peer Support Group in north west Tasmania this month, giving post-heart event support for cardiac patients in the area.
The HSA Peer Support Groups are unique communal support programs that offer comfort and guidance to those who have recently undergone a heart event and for those who have experienced heart conditions and rehabilitation.
In the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2023 Heart, stroke and vascular disease: Australian facts report, family history, including inherited genes or shared environments of risky health behaviours, is recognised as a risk factor for certain types of cardiovascular diseases in Australians.
HSA CEO Dr Christian Verdicchio said that while heart disease has been the leading cause of death for Australians for years, inherited risk factors are often overlooked by people aged 45 and over, who are recommended to get a Heart Health Check each year.
“For some people their diagnosis has a shock factor because they are not going for regular check ups with their GP where discussions like family health history and other risk factors can happen,” Christian said.
“And when they undergo treatment for a heart condition, they don’t have ongoing support and that can be incredibly isolating.
“Our support groups are designed to ensure that our patients are staying on the path to a healthier life by making it known to them that they are not alone because they are interacting with their leader and group members who have gone through similar circumstances,” Christian said.
The peer support program initiative derives from a new era of managing heart disease that empowers heart patients with education, improved self-esteem, and larger support networks that result in less of a strain on our health system with fewer hospital stays and trips to the GP.
Leading the north west Tasmania Peer Support Group is Sharron Yaxley who knew she was at higher risk of premature heart disease because both her parents had bypass surgeries in their 50s.
“I had been under a cardiologist for over 16 years, I was a keen cyclist and the leading female globally with Zwift, a cycling app, for riding over 200,000 kilometres,” Sharron said.
“I had a cyclist friend in New Zealand who had a cardiac arrest early last year and told me I needed a scan to check my calcium levels. My cardiologist was hesitant, said I was too fit, but I persisted,” she said.
Within four months Sharron was having a triple bypass open heart surgery.
“I was told that I was a very lucky girl, sitting on a ticking time bomb and that I would have likely just dropped dead because I was asymptomatic,” she said.
Now Sharron is passionate about advocating for the heart health of all people, even those who lead healthy lifestyles and would be seemingly unaffected.
“If I had a motto it would be to not judge a book by its cover like people did with my heart health just because you are fit does not mean you cannot have CVD,” she concluded.
The north west Tasmania Peer Support Group takes place on the third Wednesday of each month at the Montgomery Room, Carpark Lane, Ulverstone from 1pm.
Heart Support Australia encourages people to get involved with the community support session by getting in touch with group leader Sharron Yaxley by calling 0419 876 143 or by emailing: sharron.yaxley@stategrowth.tas.gov.au.
