Evaluation of a brief educational intervention to improve knowledge of sublingual nitroglycerin in cardiac rehabilitation patients.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to evaluate the impact of a brief educational intervention delivered in cardiac rehabilitation (CR) on patients' knowledge of sublingual nitroglycerin (SLN). METHODS: Patients (n=86) commencing CR were provided with a brief educational intervention tailored to deficits identified in an assessment of SLN knowledge using the Sublingual Nitroglycerin Questionnaire, with reassessment at the end of program completion (6-8 weeks). RESULTS: The mean age of patients was 64.95 years (standard deviation (SD) 10.87); 74% were male, 78% were married and 60% had not completed high school. Most (70%) had no prior coronary heart disease (CHD) history and 80% had been referred to CR following percutaneous coronary intervention. SLN knowledge scores increased from baseline to outcome. Patients were significantly more likely to know: the name of their SLN medication (11% increase, p=0.001), the recommended timing between doses (29% increase, p=0.02), the maximum number of doses (27% increase, p=0.005), to have SLN on their person at the time of the interview (25% increase, p<0.001) and to know the interaction between SLN and sildenafil (36% increase, p=0.001). The independent predictors of SLN knowledge included having better knowledge at baseline (ß=0.28) and having consulted a general practitioner post discharge and before commencing CR (ß=1.48). CONCLUSION: A brief standardised knowledge intervention, individually tailored to identified deficits in a knowledge screen and delivered during CR, shows promise for improving patient knowledge of SLNs. The role of general practitioners in delivering medication education needs further investigation.

A pre-test post-test study of a brief educational intervention demonstrates improved knowledge of potential acute myocardial infarction symptoms and appropriate responses in cardiac rehabilitation patients.

BACKGROUND: Patient delay in recognizing and responding to potential acute myocardial infarction (AMI) symptoms is an international issue. Cardiac rehabilitation provides an ideal opportunity to deliver an intervention. AIMS: This study examines an individual educational intervention on knowledge of heart attack warning signs and specific chest pain action plans for people with coronary heart disease. METHODS: Cardiac rehabilitation participants at five hospitals were assessed at program entry and tailored education was provided using the Heart Foundation of Australia's Heart Attack Warning Signs campaign educational tool. Participants (n=137) were reassessed at program conclusion (six to eight weeks). RESULTS: Study participants had a mean age of 64.48 years (SD 12.22), were predominantly male (78%) and most commonly presented with a current referral diagnosis of a percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) (80%) and/or AMI (60%). There were statistically significant improvements in the reporting of 11 of the 14 warning signs of heart attack, with patients reporting 2.56 more warning signs on average at outcome (p<.0001). Patients reported more heart attack warning signs if they had completed high school education (ß=1.14) or had better knowledge before the intervention (ß=.57). There were statistically significant improvements in reporting of all appropriate actions in response to potential AMI symptoms, with patients reporting an average of 1.3 more actions at outcome (p<.001), with no change in the median time they would tolerate symptoms (p=.16). CONCLUSIONS: A brief education session using a single standardised tool and adapted to a patient assessment is effective in improving knowledge of potential AMI symptoms and appropriate responses in cardiac rehabilitation up to two months following.

Collaboration: a solution to the challenge of conducting nursing research in cardiac rehabilitation.

Clinical nurse leaders such as clinical nurse consultants are required to conduct research and incorporate outcomes of this research into their every day practice. However, undertaking research presents issues for cardiac rehabilitation clinical nurse consultants because they may have competing demands, difficulty with finding replacements and may be relatively isolated from other researchers. The solution to this situation is the formation of a collaborative research team with other cardiac rehabilitation clinical nurse consultants, with the inclusion of an experienced university academic as a mentor for the cardiac rehabilitation clinical nurse consultants working in an Area Health Service encompassing both rural and metropolitan hospitals in New South Wales, Australia. The related research project aimed to evaluate and improve the clients' knowledge and practices related to the use of sublingual glyceryl trinitrate. The team's experiences and suggestions for clinical nurse Leaders are presented in this paper. Essential team characteristics include having shared motivation, good communication practices, flexibility and tolerance, an effective team size, achieving success, willingness to accept challenges and an experienced mentor. The benefits of developing a collaborative team for research led by clinical nurse consultants in cardiac rehabilitation by far outweigh the time and effort involved in the process.

Sublingual nitroglycerin practices in patients with coronary artery disease in Australia.

BACKGROUND AND RESEARCH OBJECTIVE: Sublingual nitroglycerin (SLNTG) medications are a recommended treatment for people with coronary artery disease (CAD); however, prescription and knowledge may be suboptimal. This study set out to determine how often SLNTG is prescribed and the knowledge and factors associated in patients with CAD. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Patients (n = 142) were recruited from cardiac rehabilitation and surveyed regarding SLNTG prescription and key knowledge areas related to SLNTG in those prescribed (n = 89). Multiple regression analysis was used to determine independent predictors of knowledge. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: Despite having CAD, 37% were not prescribed SLNTG, and of those prescribed, only 43% received related instruction. Knowledge of SLNTG was low at a mean 7.11 (SD, 2.05) points of a possible 14. Most participants (96%) knew to use SLNTG to treat chest pain/discomfort, and no participant described inappropriate symptoms for treatment. Although most patients (80%) knew to have the SLNTG available at all times, only 46% did so in reality. One in 5 participants reported that they would not call an ambulance if chest pain was unrelieved by SLNTG. Participants had more SLNTG knowledge if they were married, were male, and had been instructed about SLNTG and had less knowledge if their hospital discharge diagnosis included angina. The reporting of calling an ambulance for unrelieved symptoms was increased by having more knowledge of SLNTG, but decreased if participants had prior use of SLNTG, were married, or had more comorbidities. Consideration of prescription for SLNTG and related instruction, particularly for their chest-pain action plan, needs to be provided more systematically for patients with CAD.

Effectiveness of home-based cardiac rehabilitation for special needs patients.

BACKGROUND: The benefits of cardiac rehabilitation programmes have been well documented including reductions in mortality, improved physical performance, and improved quality of life. However, a large number of special needs patients often fail to access these programmes. Of particular concern are elderly patients with chronic illness and disability. AIMS: To evaluate the effectiveness of a home-based cardiac rehabilitation programme in improving health outcomes and rehabilitation access for special-needs patients. DESIGN: Using a one-group pre and post-test quasi-experimental design 40 elderly patients recently discharged from hospital following a cardiac event completed the Short Form Health Survey, the Angina Quiz, and the Exercise Assessment Questionnaire prior to undertaking home-based rehabilitation. The rehabilitation programme consisted of four community nursing contacts over a 9-week period primarily aimed at individual patient education and carer support. ANALYSIS: Descriptive statistics provided analysis for demographic data. Repeated measures multivariate analysis of variance (manova) were computed to examine changes in health-state and practices. RESULTS: Significant positive changes were found for measures of quality of life, knowledge of angina, and exercise tolerance. Additionally, the higher levels of participation and completion by older women was encouraging. Development of carer competence through an improved knowledge base and nursing support was also evident. LIMITATIONS: While theoretically defensible positive outcomes were found these results need to be replicated in a larger study. Similarly, the limitations imposed by a single group pretest, post-test design suggest that claims of generalizability need to be limited to the specific variables measured in this study. CONCLUSION: The study demonstrated medium term positive health outcomes. These positive findings suggest that home-based rehabilitation using larger samples of older patients with comorbidities, and using randomized comparative group designs, may be a fruitful area in future research.