Denton County Living Well Magazine Summer 2014 | Page 18

Getting to the Heart of the Matter:
New Screening Could Be Life-saver for Denton County Seniors

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Courtesy Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Denton
new preventative screening offered by
Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Denton
is tailor-made to citizens of Denton County
with heart. This service is offered through
the Heart Health Center, a preventative
health center that is new to the Denton County area from
Texas Health Denton.
“We care about your heart,” says Debbie Bostic, R.N.,
Chief Nursing Officer of Texas Health Denton, who heads
the program. “We are so excited to offer this kind of help for
our patients right here in our area––because we know what
it takes to take on heart disease.”

Keeping Tickers in Tip-top Shape

At the Heart Health Center at Texas Health Denton, hospital clinicians helps patients who have
taken the heart risk assessment and been
identified to have risks for heart and vascular disease. From screenings to nutrition, to fitness and lifestyle counseling, as
well as physician specialist referrals, this
center surrounds patients with the expertise, help, support and advice they need
to optimize their heart’s health, as well
as creating a plan for heart-health that is
tailor-made to each individual person.
“Your heart is the center of your cardiovascular system, and it is ultimately responsible for feeding
all of your body’s processes, so it is critically important to
keep this organ healthy,” says Bostic. “We each have both
the opportunity and responsibility to positively affect the
overall health of our heart and cardiovascular system by
knowing our numbers and making good lifestyle choices.”

Getting Started on a Heart-Healthy Lifestyle

Did you know in the U.S., according to the American
Heart Association, cardiovascular disease is the numberone cause of death and a major cause of disability? Unfortunately, most people who die suddenly from cardiovascularrelated disease have no previous symptoms. Because of
this, it is important to know your numbers and be aware of
your heart health risks.
The good news is that getting started is easy! A free, online Heart Health Risk Assessment can help you discover
your heart’s “age” and determine if you are at risk for heart
disease by answering a few, simple questions that take approximately 10 minutes to answer. Once complete, you will
receive a personalized report indicating your current heart
health and providing valuable heart health tips for you.

• Prioritizes your most harmful cardiovascular
risk factors.
The assessment helps estimate a person’s risk of cardiovascular disease during the next 10 years, as well as the
next 30 years, if you are younger than 60.
Simply visit www.yourheartage.com to complete your
custom assessment. If you are shown to have moderate to
high risks for developing heart disease, you may want to
visit the Heart Health Center at Texas Health Denton for a
heart health screening.

The Heart Health Center at Texas Health Denton

People in Denton County have expertise on their side,
in the form of experienced registered nurses, physicians
on the Texas Health Denton medical staff and other welltrained clinicians who provide care at the Heart Health
Center at Texas Health Denton. The
clinical professionals at the center conduct screenings to help determine a
patient’s opportunity for cardiac health
improvement and then lead that person
through counseling with information on
important changes in fitness, nutrition
and lifestyle that can make a difference for someone who has developed, or
could develop, cardiovascular disease.

The screening is just $139 and includes:
•
One-on-one consultation with an
advanced practice nurse
• Blood pressure, cholesterol and diabetes checks
• EKG
• Ankle brachial index
• Carotid imaging
• Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm imaging
• A personalized plan to help reduce your risks for heart disease

“We are here to help patients take their health into their
own hands,” says Bostic. “This center offers an empowering, supportive environment that gives patients the tools,
knowledge and inspiration they need to make lasting changes, and, ultimately, improve their health.”
Sounds like it might be time to put your heart into it!
For more information about the center or to make an
appointment, please call 1-877-THR-WELL or visit www.
texashealth.org/heart. For more information on heart disease, the resources above and information on diagnosis and
treatments, please visit www.texashealth.org/denton-heart.

The online heart health assessment:
• Compares your actual age to your heart’s
relative age;
• Calculates your 10-year risk of developing
cardiovascular disease; and

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Denton County Living Well Magazine • Summer 2014

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