Cricket legend and former patient Darren Lehmann goes into bat for cardiac rehab program

St Vincent's Private Hospital Northside

During his illustrious cricket playing and coaching career, including as Test player and coach of the Australian team for five years, Darren Lehmann loved to get on the front foot and play attacking cricket against rival bowlers and opponents.

 

But in the aftermath of a surprising and unwanted ‘present’ on the morning of his 50th birthday in 2020 – a major heart attack – Darren found himself completely on the back foot and defending for his life!


It started with a series of chest pains in the early hours of the morning, followed by a trip with paramedics to the Gold Coast Hospital where an angiogram confirmed he had a heart attack with blockages in three arteries. It took two days to stabilise his condition and he was then transferred to Prince Charles Hospital in Brisbane which was soon followed by triple bypass surgery, all in February 2020.

Darren Lehmann

Darren Lehmann

“I was one of the lucky ones who survived a major heart attack – although there should have been red flags for me, for a while leading up to it,” says Darren.

“Because I smoked for 30 years, being a cricketer you tend also to drink a bit and I wasn’t the fittest player going around. But like most guys, we think we’re unbreakable. We’re macho – but we shouldn’t think we’re bulletproof because we’re not and sometimes you find that out the hard way.”

Darren’s cardiologist strongly recommended he follow up his surgery by doing the cardiac recovery and rehabilitation program at St Vincent’s Private Hospital Northside – a tailored program of support designed to help patients after a cardiac event, diagnosis or procedure. It combines education, exercise-based physiotherapy, and emotional guidance within an individualised framework, so that patients can make the quickest and healthiest recovery and have the confidence to return to their normal activity.

St Vincent’s Cardiac and Cardiovascular Services Manager Deepa Sebastian says the program is a vital part of the recovery pathway for patients which is nursing and allied health-led. 

 

2024 marks St Vincent’s Northside 10th year for the cardiac rehab program, which recently also saw the 2000th patient complete the program.

 

Surprisingly, only one in three patients around Australia, who are advised to embark on a cardiac rehab program, enrol in programs and complete them. Research shows that patients who complete a cardiac rehab program have lower mortality and lower cardiovascular readmissions, giving them the best chance of a better recovery, healthier lifestyle while also saving themselves and the community money and time.

 

Deepa, who oversees the cardiac rehabilitation program at St Vincent’s Northside, says the experience in the hospital and within her team, shows that the program is greatly beneficial to patients as they try to adjust to a ‘new normal’ after cardiac intervention.

“St Vincent’s has renowned cardiologists and cardio-thoracic surgeons and a vastly experienced nursing and allied health teams with many of our staff having 20 years’ experience in cardiac care,” says Deepa.

“We’re the busiest private hospital for cardiac care in Queensland and the third busiest private hospital for cardiac services in Australia as well as being one of the largest private providers of cardiac surgical and medical services in Queensland. And our cardiac rehab program is staffed and managed by a high quality and experienced team who are passionate about the importance of every aspect of cardiac care from the moment patients come under our watch.

“Our rehab program is vital to the rehabilitation pathway for our patients, who can be recovering from anything from open heart surgery where they can be with us for days or sometimes weeks, to less invasive surgery where they only need to spend one night in hospital.”

Deepa Sebastian

Darren Lehmann started the St Vincent’s cardiac rehab program six weeks after his triple bypass in 2020, but when Covid hit and disrupted clinical and health services around the country, he was forced to ‘retire’ from the program for a few months. Finally, he was able to resume two months later in June 2020.

 

“The cardiac rehab program was fantastic for me and I’m so glad I did it. It gives you a better understanding of what’s happened to your heart and your body and especially how it changes the dynamics of your heart and your body after heart surgery (in my case, a triple bypass),” says Darren. 

 

“The staff are fantastic and super knowledgeable, and they step you through a graduated return to exercise program and it’s good to know what the safe limits are because you feel a bit vulnerable after having a heart attack.

 

“There was also the dietary information and I got a lot out of that. You would do an hour of physio class, then an hour of tuition – it was like going back to school but in a good way.

 

“You had all these different sessions – including support from the mental and emotional side of things, which encompassed what had happened to you and how to deal with the vulnerability. It was important for me to understand what had gone on and what I needed to do – especially the drugs I had been prescribed and what they all did - and why I needed to stay disciplined about the recovery. 

 

“The cardiac rehab course was something that made it easier to live my ‘new life’ in a different and better way – that was the reason to do it. The stakes were pretty high for me – it wasn’t just about living life but about creating the best quality life for myself into my 50s and for the future. 

 

“The program makes it easier to recover and it’s a long road but you are doing it under expert guidance. All of the things I learned have now become mostly ingrained into my daily habits.”

Dale Murdoch

Dr Dale Murdoch

Leading St Vincent’s Private Hospital Northside interventional cardiologist Dr Dale Murdoch says he strongly recommends to all of his patients that they follow through with the cardiac rehab program after he has treated their medical condition.

“I feel as if it should be mandatory for all patients. I tell them you can’t have complete care for your heart and expect to have a good quality of life post the trauma of a cardiac episode or a cardiac procedure without enrolling in and completing the rehab program and we’re lucky that at St Vincent’s Northside we have a world class program,” says Dr Murdoch.

“Many people are completely shell-shocked after a cardiac episode, so they’re still trying to adjust to a new normal with their cardiac health. Sometimes people aren’t ready for an educational program so soon after one of their biggest ever health challenges. 

“Most patients either totally buy in, complete the cardiac rehab program and make the recommended changes to their lifestyle permanently and they do really well – or they do nothing which usually leads to poorer health outcomes over time.

 

“In terms of the benefits of cardiac rehab – I think everyone gets better health outcomes and that’s a bit of an individual thing as to what helps them most. 

 

“But I think having that supervised exercise program and the guidance provided by a physiotherapist is very helpful and provides them with a level of assurance and peace of mind around finding new safe boundaries for what they should and shouldn’t do physically.

 

“There are reasons for why people don’t follow through and enrol in a cardiac rehab program and that can be practical things like the tyranny of distance where they’re in a rural or remote area where the program isn’t available or they have to travel long distances. Maybe they’re busy with work, family or carer commitments and they don’t prioritise their own health and sometimes they just think they don’t need to do it.”

Another St Vincent’s Northside cardiac patient, Dani Axford was completely shocked last year when she experienced mild symptoms such as fatigue and lower-than-usual energy levels – and found herself in hospital.

Aged 51 at the time, she had been “feeling off” over a period of time and put it down to a busy life as a teacher and mother, being unfit and being a bit overweight!”

But when she and her GP agreed she should become proactive about getting a diagnosis and undergoing testing, she booked in for an ECG treadmill test. Just minutes into the customary test, the cardiologist told her to stop walking. A “peculiar reading” on the sensors indicated that the left side of her heart “wasn’t working very well.” 

“They quickly established that I had a 90% blockage in a major artery and elsewhere in that artery that I had a 50% blockage – and told me that I was a ticking time bomb,” says Dani, a primary school teacher.

Dani Axford

Dani Axford

Dani Axford

Dani Axford

“I was very shaken and shocked by the diagnosis but relieved that I had answers and that it was detected when it was. I had an angiogram and a stent inserted in one artery and I was awake for the whole thing!

“But I knew it was important to then go through the cardiac rehab program which was fantastic and the staff became like family. I started it just two weeks after my surgery as I felt very fragile and vulnerable and it was a way for me to take back control and feel empowered about my health issues.

“There was wonderful emotional support, great educational information about diet and medication from the cardiac rehab team and they guided me on a way to safely build my exercise and activity program which has become part of my daily life.

“For me, that’s mainly involved walking but I have been pretty disciplined about walking regularly and increasing my regular walks and setting goals. And I’m about to embark on a 50km walk in Tasmania over four days with a friend – which I wouldn’t have thought possible right after I had my procedure.” 

St Vincent’s Private hospital also runs a range of other rehabilitation programs under its “One St Vincent’s Service” from its Kangaroo Point hospital.


Allied Health Services Manager Amanda Bromley says the programs, which specialise in orthogeriatric care, treat post-surgical recovery, reconditioning, pain management and neurological conditions. 


St Vincent’s Brisbane (at Kangaroo Point) have offered the programs and services for 20 years – caring for a total of around 700 patients a year.



The service includes:


  • Rehabilitation Medicine Physicians
  • Physiotherapists
  • Occupational Therapists
  • Social workers
  • Psychologists
  • Nurses
  • Dietitians
  • Speech pathologists
  • Counsellors
  • Dietitians
  • Spiritual Care Practitioners 

“Our rehabilitation services aim to help patients to regain independence and restore physical strength, mobility and function and our Rehabilitation Team is an experienced and highly qualified group of health care professionals,” says Amanda. 

“St Vincent’s cares for a broad mix of patients in our rehab program which could include people who have had a hip or knee replacement who could be with us for less than a week or we could be caring for patients who have had a lengthy stay in intensive care due to a significant illness who are deconditioned and have lost the ability walk or move functionally,” says Amanda.

“By providing a multi-disciplinary team, we can tailor the program to their individual needs all with the objective of ensuring they get the support and guidance they need so that they can leave and be independent and safe at home.”

Amanda Bromley

Amanda Bromley

Better and fairer care. Always.

In a rapidly transforming world, St Vincent's has created a refreshed vision and strategy to help shape Australia's health and aged care future.