Impact of Early COVID-19 Waves on Cardiac Rehabilitation Delivery in Australia: A National Survey

Abstract

Background: The novel coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic significantly disrupted health care, especially outpatient services such as cardiac rehabilitation (CR). We investigated the impact of early COVID-19 waves on the delivery of Australian CR programs, comparing this time period with usual practice prior to the pandemic (2019) and current practice (2021) once the early waves had subsided. Specifically, we aimed to understand how the delivery of programs during COVID-19 compared to usual practice. Methods: An anonymous online cross-sectional survey of Australian CR program staff was conducted, comprising three sections: program and respondent characteristics, COVID-19 impact o..