Six months after having open heart surgery at the Victorian Heart Hospital (VHH), 39-year-old Nitin Waghmare can walk to pick up his daughter from school and he is delighted.
“I feel more energetic every passing day, I feel I have a new heart!” said Nitin.
The married father-of-two is among 570 people to have had cardiac surgery at the VHH in its first year of operation.
He shares his story as part of celebrations marking the hospital’s anniversary.
A shock diagnosis
Nitin presented at the VHH in September last year after having a heart attack.
Clinicians diagnosed him with coronary artery disease in three major blood vessels.
“You do not know how mentally and physically tough you are until you hear something like that,” said the IT consultant, originally from Mumbai, India.
Nitin underwent heart bypass surgery.
This involved opening his chest, harvesting grafts from his leg and arm, and creating new coronary arteries to redirect blood around the blocked arteries that caused his heart attack.
“Everyone, from nurses to admin, was phenomenal and played their part,” he said.
“[The doctors] explained [my diagnosis and treatment] in layman’s language, so I could understand.”
Road to Recovery
After several weeks of recovery, Nitin attended the VHH Ambulatory Day Cardiac Rehabilitation Program a short distance from his Mount Waverley home.
The eight-week program for people recovering from a heart event includes support, exercise, and education.
It aims to assist in long-term lifestyle changes and lower the chance of future heart problems.
Over 11,300 patients have been through ambulatory clinics at the hospital in the past 12-months.
Today, Nitin is back cycling, swimming, and enjoying busy family life.
Reflecting on the care he received he is appreciative.
“The hospital is state of the art, the doctors are geniuses,” he said.
