HeartHub.ca

WHO WE ARE

Who are we at HeartHub.ca? We are just like you!

We are patients and family members, we are caregivers and medical experts. But most importantly, we are a group of people with a common goal: to provide patients and their families with the right information at the right time to help them make heart treatment choices.

The idea for HeartHub.ca first came from a research project. We interviewed health experts and patients about the way coronary artery disease treatment decisions were made for patients with diabetes in British Columbia. These experts and patients identified the need for consistent, credible, web-based information resources to help patients decide, along with their doctor, which treatment would be best for them.

To help bring these resources to life, researchers at the BC Centre for Improved Cardiovascular Health (ICVHealth) involved a number of health professionals and patients across British Columbia in the planning, writing, and sharing of everything you see here on HeartHub.ca. While the project was initially designed for diabetic patients with coronary artery disease, much of the information may be used to help guide heart treatment decisions in many different types of patients living with this form of heart disease.

This website is truly for patients, by patients – from the images, to the content, to the official logo! We have aimed to make everything available in plain language, in many languages, and as user-friendly as possible. It is our hope that HeartHub.ca helps patients and their loved ones on their journey to health and wellness by providing them with tools to make the best possible decision for themselves.

How to use HeartHub.ca

This website can be used to prepare for medical appointments and to help guide conversations with heart doctors. The information provided throughout the website has been carefully thought out by people who have experienced coronary artery disease, and by people like clinicians and family members who have taken care of someone with this disease.

Some ideas for using HeartHub.ca include:

  • Review plain language summaries on heart disease and treatment
  • Consider the pros and cons of different treatments
  • Understand myths vs. facts about heart disease and treatment
  • Print out a checklist of questions to ask your health care provider

HEART RESEARCH

Read our research guide for patients, by patients (with a little help from health experts!).

PROS & CONS

See some of the benefits and drawbacks of having different heart treatments.

MYTHBUSTERS

“Bust” common myths about coronary artery disease and its treatment.

PATIENT CHECKLIST

View and print a personal checklist of common questions to ask your doctor.

HeartHub.ca meets all five criteria in the Patients Included patient information resources charter:

  1. Patients participates in the co-creation, delivery, and review of the resources produced.
  2. The disability requirements of participants are accommodated.
  3. Patients were provided with the necessary support to fully contribute.
  4. All resources are freely accessible either in print and/or digitally from the internet or via a mobile app.
  5. All resources are patient-centred, free of jargon and undefined acronyms, and prepared in plain language.