We are the qualified professionals behind Pulse Cardiac Health.
We want to share our cardiac expertise with you.
Pulse Cardiac Health
Pulse Cardiac Health is run by a "BIG HEARTED" husband and wife team, who met in 2000 working together in the cardiac rehabilitation program at the Wellness Institute in Winnipeg MB. Their main goal is to take the knowledge and expertise they have gained over the years and share it with as many people as possible.
Cam and Shawna believe strongly in the impact that cardiac rehabilitation has on the prevention and recovery of cardiovascular disease. It is well documented that way too many people with cardiovascular disease do not have access to formal cardiac rehabilitation programs simply because of where they live! For that reason Pulse was created. Using an online home based delivery model, Pulse Cardiac Health provides a structured comprehensive 12 week monitored cardiac rehab program. Having access to cardiac rehabilitation following a heart event is life changing, not only for the individual but also for their loved ones.
The Special Meaning of the Pulse Logo
The spiral logo for Pulse is a symbol from New Zealand called a Koru. It symbolizes new life, growth, strength and peace. After a family member passed away, the concept of life, its unpredictability, and the importance of living it, came into clear perspective. Cam and Shawna packed up their 3 kids and moved to New Zealand for 9 months to reset. It was through this adventure together, that the Koru and what it symbolized, took on special meaning for them. New life, growth, strength, and peace were inevitably what this time in New Zealand together gave them.
For Pulse Cardiac Health, through working with the many individuals at risk of heart disease, or who have experienced a variety of heart events… new life, growth, strength, and peace… seemed extremely fitting. This can be an uncertain time, and as well, a unique time to reset. Pulse Cardiac Health is here to support and empower each member along the way.
Shawna
Shawna is a Certified Clinical Exercise Physiologist through both the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology and the American College of Sports Medicine. She is also an Adjunct Professor at the University of British Columbia (Okanagan) in the faculty of Health and Exercise Science.
Shawna has been working in Cardiac Rehabilitation for almost 20 years. Her years in the health and fitness field however have spanned over her lifeftime. As an elite level athlete she fell in love with understanding the human body, and how the choices she made, affected how it performed. This led to a degree from the University of Winnipeg in the stream of Athletic Therapy, and the passion towards helping others recover from injury and "be their best selves" grew.
After her first experience being part of the cardiac rehabilitation team at the Wellness Institute in Winnipeg, Shawna decided this field was where she could make the most impact. After a travel adventure with her family to New Zealand and ultimately relocating to Kelowna, she specialized in cardiac health, and began working with the C.O.A.C.H cardiac rehabilitation program. After almost 10 years with C.O.A.C.H, Shawna turned her attention towards providing vitual support and Pulse Cardiac Health was born.
Cam
Cam is a Registered Nurse currently working in cardiology at the Kelowna General Hospital in British Columbia. After graduating from high school in rural Manitoba, he completed a Bachelor of Science and a Bachelor of Physical Education both at the University of Manitoba.
He started his career in 1996 as one of the initial Wellness Consultants at the Wellness Institute at Seven Oaks General Hospital. In addition to assessing and prescribing exercise programs for all types of individuals, he was involved in the creation of the cardiac rehab program. In his eight years at the Wellness Institute, Cam gained a great deal of knowledge and experience while working alongside physicians, nurses, physiotherapists, dieticians and social workers as part of the cardiac rehab team.
This knowledge fuelled Cam to pursue his Bachelor of Nursing at the University of Manitoba while working as a Wellness Consultant. After graduating from nursing in 2004 he was hired to manage a one year pilot project which screened individuals to identify their risk of developing cardiovascular disease. For the next seven years he worked full time in emergency departments in both Winnipeg and Kelowna with one year as a nurse in the operating room in New Zealand.
In 2011, Cam got back to his first love, cardiology, when he started working in the Regional Cardiac Cath Lab in Kelowna. He has since become certified as a critical care nurse through the American Association of Critical –Care Nurses as well as a Certified Cardiovascular Nurse through the Canadian Nursing Association. He currently works in the Cardiac Electrophysiology Lab and the Heart Rhythm Clinic in addition to the Cardiac Cath Lab. He is a leader in his workplace and especially enjoys teaching staff, students, patients and family members about all aspects of cardiovascular disease.