Distinguished Member of the Year 2026- Eric Larson
IACPR Distinguished member of the year is awarded to acknowledge an individual who has made significant contributions to the state affiliate society. This year’s nomination brings reflection on what becoming a part of IACPR is all about and how it can impact your professional career with colleagues, mentors, and friends that have like values and passions for what we do and the patients we care for.
From the first conference that he attended, we knew we needed to get him involved. He has run with any idea we have asked of him, and he takes any challenge as an opportunity to learn, grow, and bring positive change. This individual is an Education Committee Director, a BOD Region Mentor, and a past President who stepped up in our time of need to fill the Presidency for an additional term. He is committed to empowering students, physicians, colleagues, and leaders in our profession through the 31 years of experience as an EP in Cardiac and Pulmonary Rehab by embracing program shadowing, speaking engagements, and numerous research projects. His current research project is Dietary Impacts on Cardiac Rehab Patients-Role of a Dietician Consult. His collaborative approach has helped programs outside of his network while making impactful connections along the way. He brings fresh ideas from his leadership experience through MOKSACVPR. He has been instrumental in the grass roots for the professionals new to Cardiac Rehab and IACPR strategic planning. As an influential leader, he has introduced the idea and volunteered to lead a Bootcamp for up-and-coming leaders that are dedicated to the future of our affiliate.
Distinguished Program of the Year 2026- Marshalltown Cardiopulmonary Rehab
Contributions to the provision of Cardiac and/or Pulmonary Rehab:
Over the last few years Marshalltown Cardiopulmonary Rehab has made many strides to contribute to the provision of Cardiac & Pulmonary Rehab. Some highlights of accomplishments include moving the Rehab from the dated hospital that went through Derecho in 2020 to the new hospital in 2022. With this a multitude of changes were made to improve patient flow, access, staff efficiency, patient care & education, safety, communication, documentation, and much more. This included invovative evidence based practices like weaning telemetry, blood pressures, and pulse oximeter monitoring as patients progressed through the program based on risk stratification. Patients also were encouraged to get more involved with their program progression and workout design through distributing daily workout plans, improved RPE/RPD education, changes to the ITPs and more. Both of these things helped allow patients better progressive independence and improved confidence for lifetime behavior change at discharge.
The program also started both a pulmonary and PAD program in 2023. This involved assessing need, budgeting changes, purchasing equipment, advertising, scott care builds, creating patient education and charting, and other things too numerous to name. This and the other various changes to improve efficiency, adherance, outcomes, and patient satisfaction has led to a net increase of over 500 patient visits per year from 2022 to 2025!
Staff education and support has improved greatly too as they were added to the daily Allen huddles, they were represented on the monthly cardiopulmonary rehab leadership meetings in the UnityPoint system, and they completed both the AACVPR cardiac competency bundle and the pulmonary certification bundle. They now also regulary attend state conference, AACVPR webinars, and plan to go to the Lacrosse CR workshop this spring.
The Marshalltown program appreciates all the support they have received throughout these extensive changes from neighboring rehabs that let them visit and share knowledge, other rehabs throughout their system that helped them critically evaluate ideas, the providers that worked to increase appropriate referrals and move from paper to electronic processes, other departments within the hospital that made the day to day possible or started floating to our department to elevate the education, and our wonderful medical director who consistently goes above and beyond. As manager I would most of all like to thank my staff who were so patient, inquizative, positive, knowledgeable, self-directive, and on and on…I can’t say enough about how much you deserve this award and how much you have done for the Marshalltown community!
Aleshia Bloker
