The 67-year-old prided himself on having a healthy lifestyle with plenty of regular exercise.

So he was shocked to discover, after going to hospital with chest pains in January, some of the veins to his heart were significantly blocked and needed stents put in.

Mr Yvanovich said he was glad he knew the warning signs and didn't ignore the pain.

"My specialist said I was a time bomb just waiting to happen," he said.

He has been going to cardiovascular rehabilitation sessions and staying in close contact with his doctors - important steps to prevent heart attacks.

Nationally, research has shown about half of people who have had a heart attack or stroke do not get best practice care.

A new program from the Australian National University is trying to change that.

University experts have received $600,000 in ACT government funding to conduct research to ensure people with the highest risk of heart disease and stroke receive best practice care.

The program will support patients a number of ways including transport for patients taking part, strategies to ensure effective communication from the hospital to the patient's GP and an analysis and identification of patients who require extra support to take medication.

Project lead professor Emily Banks said the research could help inform the rest of Australia, and the world, about how to improve the lives of people who suffer strokes and heart attacks.

She said people who did not have best practice care often missed out on things like cardiovascular rehabilitation and taking medication to control cholesterol and blood pressure.

Dr Banks said it was not currently clear what proportion of the ACT was getting best practice care.

"It's about making sure people don't fall through the cracks," she said. "All the way through the system there are going to be things that can be improved."

Dr Banks said after a heart attack, one-in-four people were back in hospital with a cardiovascular disease emergency within two years.

"We also know many repeat heart attacks and strokes can be prevented with best-practice care, including cardiac rehabilitation, early and regular reviews in general practice and appropriate medication," she said.

"This initiative will ensure the people at the highest risk - including survivors of heart attack and stroke, people with lower income and education, people with severe mental illness and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples - receive the timely and targeted health interventions they need."

The initiative will include a cardiovascular disease taskforce made up of survivors of heart attacks and stroke, general practitioners, cardiologists, neurologists, policymakers and public health experts.

The project team brings together researchers from the ANU Research School of Population Health, the ANU Medical School and the Heart Foundation.

Heart Foundation ACT CEO Tony Stubbs welcomed the new initiative.

"This initiative and its important work will make sure the people in our community at highest risk of repeat heart attacks and strokes get the care and prevention they desperately need," he said.

"We know what we need to do to stop the toll of heart attacks and strokes. We've just got to get on and do it. This will make that task a lot easier."

Health Minister Meegan Fitzharris said the new program would aim to make it easier for patients to manage their condition so they avoid another attack, a trip to the hospital or much worse.

"Often people who have survived a heart attack or stroke struggle to commit to a thorough clinical management regime to keep a second attack at bay," she said.

According to research by the university, the reasons patients might struggle committing to a treatment regime include medical and non-medical priorities, patients becoming disconnected with medical advice and financial strain.

"A program such as this has the potential to prevent heart disease by implementing a program that helps people to manage their health and clinical needs with the right supports at the right time," Ms Fitzharris said.