Swedish Takes a Stand Against Heart Disease

Dr. Sarah Speck, a recognized leader in personalized cardiovascular care, engages community in important conversation about heart health

Swedish launches a series of initiatives to engage the public; heart healthy seminar planned for February 23

SEATTLE, Feb. 14, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Swedish, the largest, most comprehensive non-profit health provider in the greater Seattle area, today announced its plans for American Heart Month, recognized in the month of February. American Heart Month is led by the American Heart Association to raise funds for research and education and to raise awareness about heart disease and stroke.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women in the United States, according to the American Heart Association. Every year about 785,000 Americans have a heart attack and another 470,000, who have already had one or more heart attacks, have another attack.

"Swedish is proud to participate in American Heart Month to bring attention to our nation's number one killer—cardiovascular disease," said Marcel Loh, chief administrative officer at Swedish's Cherry Hill campus. "The Swedish Heart and Vascular Institute is dedicated to research and treatment of cardiovascular disease, including stroke. We are urging our community to take a stand to reduce their risks of heart disease."

Swedish's Heart and Vascular Institute offers a full spectrum of heart and vascular services, from prevention to treatment and research. The Swedish Heart & Vascular Institute is affiliated with more than 60 cardiovascular specialists, including cardiologists, surgeons, radiologists, anesthesiologists and vascular specialists.

For American Heart Month, Swedish is taking a stand to educate the public by hosting several initiatives:

Seattle's All-Star Celebrity Chefs & A Swedish Surgeon Go Heart Healthy

Imagine what it would be like to have one of Seattle's top chefs in your kitchen showing you how to cook a healthy meal. That's a fantasy that is about to come true thanks to the Swedish Heart & Vascular Institute and the John L. Locke Jr. Charitable Trust. Six of Seattle's top chefs created heart healthy recipes and online videos as part of the Swedish video series, "Heart Healthy Eating with Seattle's All-Star Chefs," available online at http://bit.ly/allstarrecipes.

Dr. Sarah Speck, a cardiologist and medical director of the Cardiovascular Wellness and Rehabilitation Program at Swedish, approached the Locke Trust about funding a project to teach people how to cook healthy meals with easy-to-use ingredients. Dr. Speck wanted to create a series of videos that would showcase local chefs preparing original heart-healthy recipes, featuring fresh fruits and vegetables, lean meats and fish, whole grains, olive oil and limited dairy products.

Dr. Speck and Swedish organized an outreach program to engage local chefs in the program and the online video series was created. Each of the six eight-minute videos features an original gourmet recipe that is not only heart healthy, but also simple to make. Downloadable recipes are available online at http://bit.ly/allstarrecipes.  Here is a list of the participating restaurants, chefs and recipes:

• William Belickis (Mistral Kitchen) – Roasted Farro with Mushrooms
• Ericka Burke (Volunteer Park Cafe) – Pan-seared Sockeye Salmon with Zucchini Salad
• Maria Hines (Tilth Restaurant) – Halibut with Couscous, Cucumber and Yogurt; and Holly Smith (Cafe Juanita) – Grilled Lamb with Olive Tapenade and Chickpea Puree
• Ethan Stowell (Ethan Stowell Restaurants) – English Pea, Barley and Kale Soup
• John Sundstrom (Lark) – Herbed Pork Tenderloin with Chanterelle, White Bean and Tomato Ragout

Swedish Executive Chef Eric Eisenberg Launches Healthy Eating Vlog

Chef Eric Eisenberg is not only Swedish's executive chef, he has been on blood pressure medication for the past decade.  After recently changing his eating habits and diet, he has lost more than 40 pounds and is no longer on any blood pressure medication.

Chef Eric has been documenting his experiences and sharing heart healthy eating tips on his vlog, http://ericeatsinpublic.wordpress.com/. Each week in February, Chef Eric will be sharing additional heart healthy cooking demonstrations and providing tips on cooking and preparing healthier meals on Valentine's Day.

February 23, 6-8 p.m. - Heart Health Seminar

Swedish is hosting a free seminar on Wednesday, February 23, 2011 featuring heart healthy tips and advice from its experts about preventing cardiovascular disease and how small changes in diet, exercise and lifestyle can dramatically reduce risk of a heart attack. Swedish will also offer free health screenings and heart-healthy appetizers. These seminars will be held at Swedish's Redmond and Mill Creek ambulatory care clinics and at Swedish/Cherry Hill from six to eight p.m.  Anyone interested in attending one of these seminars can register online at www.swedish.org/takeheart or by phone at 1-800-Swedish.  Space is limited.

February 28- Heart Healthy Social Media Lunch at Mistral Kitchen

Socialize, network and watch a cooking demonstration by Chef William Belickis of Mistral Kitchen at the first heart healthy Social Media Lunch in Seattle. Chef William Belickis teamed up with Swedish's Dr. Sarah Speck as part of the Heart Healthy Eating with Seattle's All-Star Chefs online video series.  At this luncheon, sponsored and hosted by Swedish, registered guests will have the opportunity to try the heart healthy recipe created by Mistral Kitchen. Detailed information about location, time and how to register for the Social Media Lunch can be found at www.smlunch.com

Tweet Your Heart Out

Throughout the month of February, use the #TakeHeart hashtag to follow along and join in on the discussion.  

For more information about Swedish's events for American Heart Month, visit www.swedish.org/takeheart.  

About Swedish

Established in 1910, Swedish has grown over the last 100 years to become the largest, most comprehensive non-profit health provider in the Greater Seattle area. It is comprised of four hospital campuses – First Hill, Cherry Hill, Ballard and Edmonds – a freestanding emergency department and ambulatory care center in Issaquah and Redmond, Swedish Visiting Nurse Services, and the Swedish Medical Group – a network of more than 40 primary-care and specialty clinics located throughout the Puget Sound area. In fall 2009, Swedish broke ground on a new medical office building and hospital in the Issaquah Highlands. In February, a freestanding emergency department and ambulatory care center facility will open in Mill Creek.  In addition to general medical and surgical care, Swedish is known as a regional referral center, providing specialized treatment in areas such as cardiovascular care, cancer care, neuroscience, orthopedics, high-risk obstetrics, pediatric specialties, organ transplantation and clinical research. For more information, visit www.swedish.org.

SOURCE Swedish Medical Center