Wally makes a comeback for heart awareness

Wally Katzke is the ambassador for the ‘The Healthy Heart Family Drive', an initiative offering free glucose, cholesterol, blood pressure (hypertension) and BMI screenings at selected Netcare Hospitals and Medicross Family Medical and Dental Centres on Friday, 25 and Saturday, 26 September 2009. The initiative is being taken to South Africans around the country by Netcare in partnership with Medicross Family Medical and Dental Centres and supported by Roche Accu-Chek.

Wally, who in 2008 had single-bypass open-heart surgery performed at Netcare Milpark Hospital to rectify narrowed arteries that put him at high risk for a massive heart attack, completed the Argus/Pick n Pay cycling race earlier this year and says he is feeling much better since the operation. Completing the Argus would have been inconceivable a year before, he adds.

The father of two and grandfather agreed to have the open-heart surgery broadcast on television as part of the Heart and Stroke Foundation's heart-health education initiative called “Meet Wally's Heart”. The educational transmission generated enormous interest from the South African public and Wally became something of a celebrity.

Wally says that the first warning signs that he had a heart problem came to him “out of the blue” on the golf course some ten years ago. He felt as if a huge weight had been put onto his chest and he could hardly breathe. He was subsequently put onto medication for high blood pressure and raised cholesterol levels, and a stent was inserted. In 2004 he developed Type II diabetes and his heart disease continued to worsen until he needed the open-heart surgery last year.

Wally admits that his lifestyle before the surgery was not conducive to a healthy cardiovascular system. An injured ankle prevented him from exercising as much as he would have liked and he did not follow a healthy diet. He generally skipped breakfast and lunch, and his diet included few vegetables, but a great deal of red meat and other fatty foods. He was a heavy smoker and smoking is known to encourage the clogging of the arteries with fatty deposits. He was also often stressed at work, another contributor to heart disease in many people.

Today the Gauteng businessman believes in moderation; he has given up smoking, is watching his diet more closely, is eating smaller portions and is getting some exercise. It is all paying off for the new, healthier Wally who is able to enjoy time with his family again.

Wally urges family members to support one another in their efforts to reach better heart health. He says he could never have made it through his ordeal without the support of his family, and wishes he had known more about how to prevent heart disease earlier in his life.

“Parents should be educating children on the importance of a good diet and healthy living and encourage their school-going children to be screened too on the 25th and 26th September,” he suggests. “For couples concerned about their health and well-being, a visit to the closest participating Netcare Hospital or Medicross Family Medical and Dental Centres Centre can be turned into a meaningful and life-enhancing project. It really is better to prevent yourself from having a heart attack rather than having to deal with the consequences of having one. Ask me, I should know!”

Free screenings will be held at selected Netcare Hospitals and Medicross Family Medical and Dental Centres nationwide between 08:00 and 18:00 on Friday, 25 September and between 08:30 and 13:00 on Saturday, 26 September 2009. For more information on the nationwide Netcare Hospital and Medicross Family Medical and Dental Centres participation in the ‘Healthy Heart Family Drive', log on to www.netcare.co.za.

As part of a nationwide outreach by Netcare and Medicross Family Medical and Dental Centres the group will be running an aggressive print and radio campaign between 22 and 26 September 2009.