Impact of Early COVID-19 Waves on Cardiac Rehabilitation Delivery in Australia: A National Survey

Clinical Implications of Suspending and Altering Cardiac Rehabilitation Programs During the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…There was a reduction in CR utilization at the beginning of the pandemic, which normalized quickly. These findings are in contrast to observations in American1 and Australian2 CR centers, where greater and more persistent declines in CR participation were observed. An explanation for these different outcomes may be that adjustments were made to Dutch CR programs to cope with the downturn in enrollment 4.…”

“…To limit the spread of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation (CR) programs were temporarily suspended and subsequently altered. 1,2 The clinical consequences of these changes are unclear. We assessed the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on CR participation, utilization, and clinical outcomes.…”

“…The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic had a significant negative impact on the global burden of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and the delivery of cardiovascular care. To limit the spread of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation (CR) programs were temporarily suspended and subsequently altered 1,2. The clinical consequences of these changes are unclear.…”

Expanding access to telehealth in Australian cardiac rehabilitation services: a national survey of barriers, enablers, and uptake

“…We achieved responses from ∼30% of known CR services during a tumultuous period where 40% of programmes reported periods of closure and 70% were providing reduced programme delivery. 8 However, the study is limited by its reliance on self-reported rather than objectively validated data, and its cross-sectional nature, which required respondents to reflect on two previous timepoints. While we adjusted the significance level for post hoc comparisons (across the three timepoints) using the Bonferroni correction technique, we acknowledge that the analyses were not adjusted with respect to multiple endpoints.…”

“…Many programmes (51.5%) reported decreased referrals and reduced participation levels (77.5%), and therefore, we felt that the programmes were inferior in quality to pre-pandemic levels. 8 In the present study, we investigate how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted the modality of CR care delivery as perceived by Australian CR providers. Specifically, we aim to determine: (i) uptake of telehealth in CR during and since the COVID-19 pandemic, (ii) perceptions of telehealth for CR, (iii) barriers to and enablers of telehealth use in CR; and (iv) the support required to integrate and sustain telehealth into CR services.…”