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Program's goal: heart-healthy life

By NICOLE JOHNSON
Published February 1, 2007

ADVERTISEMENT [Times photo: Douglas R. Clifford] Jean Hamilton, 76, works out in the gym at Morton Plant Mease Hospital. She continues to work out even though she graduated from the Healthy Heart Initiative program last month.

CLEARWATER - Jean Hamilton handled esophagus disease and breast cancer well.

But a diagnosis of diabetes was a different story for the 76-year-old.

"Knowing that I'd have to restrict what I ate was hard," Hamilton said. "That was just it for me."

Determined not to let another health problem threaten her sanity, she got proactive.

Six months ago, when Hamilton saw a newspaper ad for the Morton Plant Mease Hospital's Healthy Heart Initiative, she decided to call.

The heart initiative is a community outreach program that screens women and teaches them about risk factors and signs of cardiovascular disease. The program is free and is geared toward women who might not be able to afford specialized medical care or access to fitness facilities.

"For a lot of women, this is a way for them to be able to get screening for heart disease that otherwise maybe they couldn't afford," hospital spokeswoman Amy Morrow said.

After being screened for a full cholesterol profile, blood glucose, blood pressure and body mass index, Hamilton, a retired secretary, was put on a three-times-a-week workout plan. She also used the gym at the hospital's Cheek-Powell Heart and Vascular Pavilion free of charge.

Health professionals say the program helps women protect themselves from heart disease before it happens.

The initiative began in 2005, after a study conducted by the University of South Florida revealed that more than 50 percent of women surveyed were unaware that heart disease was the leading cause of death in women.

In fact, one in five women in the United States has some form of cardiovascular disease, according to reports.

"The awareness campaign for women in cancer has been so successful," said Ann Murphy-Hough, who manages the hospital's cardiac rehabilitation program. "But the No. 1 cause of death of women in the United States is heart disease."

Morrow added, "If women are unaware of the risk, what we found is they don't access care."

Apathy among women has compounded the problem, Murphy-Hough said.

Many still consider heart disease a "man's disease."

Since the program's inception, hospital cardiac staff have screened 241 women for heart disease.

Of those participants, 50 continued through the six-month wellness program like Hamilton. About two dozen have graduated. To graduate, a woman must simply complete the program prescribed to her for the six months.

There are no benchmarks that must be met. Hamilton, who lives in Clearwater, continues to work out at the gym despite having graduated from the program late last month.

When she began the program her HDL or good cholesterol was 41, now its 53. And her blood glucose level was 8, 7 and below is optimal. Today her glucose level is 6.5 and she's dropped 10 pounds.

"I'm up about losing weight," Hamilton said. "But most of all, I gained energy. I can clean the house now."

Times staff writer Nicole Johnson can be reached at njohnson@sptimes.com or (727)445-4162.

Fast Facts:

Do you qualify?

To qualify for a free healthy heart screening through Morton Plant Mease Hospital's Healthy Heart Initiative, women must meet the following eligibility requirements:

- Income eligible. For example, a single person's annual income can't exceed $22,500.

- 20 years or older.

- Resident of Pinellas County.

- No prior reports of chest pain to a health care professional.

- No prior diagnosis of cardiovascular disease.

- Not under the direct care of a cardiologist.

Screenings are available by appointment 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays at Morton Plant Hospital's Barrett Outpatient Center, 430 Pinellas St.

Call (727) 462-7905.

[Last modified February 1, 2007, 00:26:42]