The Health Tree Foundation The Health Tree Foundation

Charities help heart failure patients

Heart failure patients at Scunthorpe General Hospital are to benefit from funded exercise rehabilitation sessions.

The Cardiac Rehabilitation Interest Group (CRIG), formed by several ex-patients of Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust have kindly donated funding to the project to pay for a fitness instructor for 6 months whilst the study is undertaken.

Winterton and District Lions Club raised funds to buy blood pressure monitors,  equipment trolley, TV and DVD combo, to be able to put on exercise classes for patients who have suffered heart failure identified from the heart failure nurses work load.

Cardiac specialist nurse Gill Bromby along with the help of the other heart failure nurse at Scunthorpe hospital Louise Gore are holding a twice weekly session for an 8 week period to complete a feasibility study to see if seated exercise using a DVD can be taught in a group. The research will help Gill gain her Masters qualification in Philosophy.

Supervised by Professor Patrick Doherty, of York University the chair based exercise program approach in the heart failure population, is currently delivered one to one basis. Gills study will hopefully show that exercise delivered in a group setting is feasible.

The chair based sessions are delivered by level 4 Cardiac rehabilitation fitness instructor, Angela Danby. The sessions take place twice a week for patients who have suffered from heart failure.

Angela Danby said: “The sessions are taught using a DVD to help give confidence and independence back to our patients who have suffered from heart failure”.

The feasibility study will take place over 6 month period and hopefully engage patients to become independent their everyday lives.


Chair of CRIG Mickie O’Toole said: “We set up CRIG to help patients who suffer from cardiac illness. We raise funds locally and give locally. We wanted to help push forward the research and development of how exercise can help the recovery of heart failure patients. Doctors give us our lives back the nurses give us permission to live it.”


Member of the Winterton and District Lions Club, Enid Bridge said: “We heard about the new group and knew we wanted to get involved. We were able buy the equipment from the Scunthorpe dog agility show which we recently arranged.”

“My husband has suffered with heart attacks in the past so it was close to my heart to get involved.”

Gill approached the NHS trusts, research and governance manager, Marion Hood, to help the programme pass trusts governance approval, research and ethical approval.

Gill Bromby said: “The program works on 7 different levels of fitness, each patient carries out an incremental shuttle walk test to ascertain their level of fitness and they are prescribed exercise at 70% of their maximum.  We hope to boost patient’s confidence and self-esteem”.

“I would personally like to thank Marion for going the extra mile to get the programme up and running. Without her help and support, I would not have completed all the red tape”. Also my colleague Louise Gore for giving her time and support willingly, without her help the feasibility study could not have gone ahead.

“The team and I would like to thank the Winterton and District Lions and CRIG for their kind donation and support.”

The Health Tree Foundation is the official charity for the hospital and is proud to work in partnership with CRIG to deliver great wishes like these.

If you would like any more information about the programme please contact Cardiac specialist nurse Gill Bromby at Scunthorpe General Hospital on: 01724 282282.

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