Donna Thomas is a heart failure nurse navigator at Salem Health. She teaches a monthly class, Living With Heart Failure, to help people with the chronic condition to manage their health at home.

Heart failure occurs when the heart can’t pump enough blood to meet the body’s needs, causing blood to back up into the lungs and making it difficult to breathe.

Meeting patients where they are

After spending time with patients at the hospital, Thomas refers them to her class.

“Teaching them while they’re in the hospital doesn’t really help. Truthfully, I have patients falling asleep on me,” she said.

Thomas said by meeting outside the hospital, patients are more alert. And, it helps her reach more people in the community.

Managing heart failure

In the class, the nurse navigator recommends patients watch their sodium and fluid intake, do daily weigh-ins, as well as stay on track with medications and follow-up appointments.

Thomas said if patients eat too much salt, the kidneys struggle to process extra fluids.

“If they get fluid-overloaded, they’re not going to be able to breathe,” she said. “That’s when they come to the ER.”

Types of heart failure and common causes

There are two types of heart failure: systolic and diastolic.

In systolic heart failure, the heart muscle is weak. In diastolic heart failure, the muscle is stiff and unable to relax. They both lead to fluid overload in the body and challenge breathing.

The Living With Heart Failure class looks at the common causes of heart failure. The biggest one is high blood pressure.

Other risk factors include diabetes, obesity, sleep apnea, smoking and alcohol abuse.

A healthy path forward

From there, Thomas outlines a path forward through healthy habits. The biggest recommendation? Exercise.

Start by walking in small increments, she recommends – like 10 minutes at a time.

“Someone who has been in the hospital won’t be able to do 30 minutes,” she said. “They’ll have to work their way up to it.”

The nurse also recommends a low-sodium diet and adhering to healthy habits, such as not smoking.

How to sign up

At the end of the class, Thomas shares additional resources where cardiology patients can get more information.

The class takes place monthly at Salem Hospital in the Community Health Education Center – Building D, Classroom 1