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Heart luncheon

Scope expands to current issues facing men

ERIN O’NEILL The Marietta Times Tisha Chichester of Marietta holds her 3-month-old niece, Taylor Schaad, during the Cardiac Conversations Sweetheart Luncheon at the Marietta Shrine Club Thursday. Chichester and her mother, Belinda Schaad, and sister-in-law, Tamara Schaad, were at the luncheon to support Donna Hutchinson, the baby’s great-grandmother and a two-time heart attack survivor.

A sea of red filled the Marietta Shrine Club on Thursday morning as the Cardiac Conversations Sweetheart Luncheon mixed personal stories with educational speakers.

The annual event is put on by the Memorial Health System as a way to shine a light on heart disease and prevention. Typically the event is geared toward women as part of the National Wear Red Day movement and recognizing February as American Heart Month. This year the luncheon was open to men as well.

“This is my first year and I came because my sister asked me,” said Floyd Earley, Jr., of Brownsville, who was with his sister, Donna Taylor.

“Our mom had heart issues … a leaky valve,” Taylor said. “She passed away due to complications.”

The brother and sister duo sat at a table with the Schraders, a couple from Parkersburg.

“This is our first time attending the event,” said Ray Schrader, 73. “I have AFib (atrial fibrillation) but it’s under control.”

Kathy Schrader, 69, said she and her husband were attending the event to get some information.

“We wanted to get some tips on eating and healthy living,” she said.

According to Dr. Maninder Singh Bedi, one of four panelists addressing the crowd of around 100, 20 percent of people over the age of 70 have AFib. He shared a story about one of his patients who was finding it hard to incorporate changes into his working lifestyle as a truck driver.

“It is hard but people need to make the effort,” he said, adding a little levity. “I have lost 40 pounds myself by giving up white bread … the whiter the bread, the earlier you’re dead.”

The luncheon was a family affair for Donna Hutchinson and her daughter Belinda Schaad, who have been attending the event for many years.

“We came to support mom,” said Schaad, who was joined by her daughter, Tisha Chichester, daughter-in-law, Tamara Schaad and 3-month-old granddaughter, Taylor Schaad.

“Mom has suffered two heart attacks and my husband actually suffered one so he goes to see Dr. Mayo now,” Belinda said.

Dr. Joseph Mayo is an interventional cardiologist at Marietta Memorial Hospital who treated Hutchinson after episodes in 1999 and 2015.

“When it comes to the heart, MMH is top notch,” Hutchinson said. “I’m so glad I don’t have to go anywhere else.”

Joining Dr. Bedi on the panel were Dr. Tarek Moussa, a cardiac electrophysiologist, Dr. Shane Parmer, a vascular surgeon, and Dr. Dan Breece, director of emergency and urgent services and EMS medical director for Washington and Monroe counties.

“We are very excited about a new program we hope to roll out at the end of March,” Breece said. “It’s the CAREpoint system and it will help us to equip all the squads in the county to be able to communicate faster with the hospital.”

Breece told the attendees that the system can be used in any instance where the dissemination of information quickly will lead to better quality of care for patients.

“Time is muscle. Time is brain. And quicker care can lead to better outcomes,” he said.

After a lunch provided by da Vinci’s, the guests were shown a video of a mock heart patient’s transition from the Belpre ER to Memorial’s main campus. The panelists then spoke about their specialties and answered questions.

Most of the panelists spoke directly to the women in the audience when giving advice related to preventing heart attacks.

“We know that women are always on the go,” said Parmer. “Maybe they don’t always talk about what’s going on… but they need to be honest with themselves and with their doctors and listen to what their bodies are telling them.”

Tips for a healthy heart

¯ Be honest when discussing health issues — both with yourself and your doctor. Don’t ignore symptoms.

¯ Be direct with your doctor and make sure your doctor is direct with you.

¯ Make sure you have a clear understanding of what your doctor is telling you.

¯ Have mutual expectations for treatment.

¯ Take control of diet and exercise — count calories and aim for 12,000 steps a day.

¯ Keep taking medications as directed for other illnesses, such as high cholesterol or diabetes.

Source: Memorial Health System panelists.

Signs of heart attack in women

¯ Uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness or pain in the center of your chest. It lasts more than a few minutes, or goes away and comes back.

¯ Pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw or stomach.

¯ Shortness of breath with or without chest discomfort.

¯ Other signs such as breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea or lightheadedness.

¯ Women are somewhat more likely than men to experience some of the other common symptoms, particularly shortness of breath, nausea/vomiting and back or jaw pain.

Source: The American Heart Association.

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