Effectiveness of a self - management program on dyspnea, re-admission, and quality of life in congestive heart failure patients
Keywords:
Self-management program, Dyspnea, Re-admission, Quality of life, Patients with congestive heart failureAbstract
Introduction: Uncontrolled heart failure has been identified as a leading cause of death globally and a major healthproblem in Thailand. The number of patients and death rates has increased rapidly. Lacking of knowledgeand improper behavior are mainly causes of patient’s re-hospitalization, severe symptoms andcomplications. Promoting self-managements is important to control the disease and reduce complications.
Method: The purpose of this experimental research was to evaluate of a self-management program in congestiveheart failure patients. Thirty-four heart failure patients, 2nd and 3rd level of functional class, who werehospitalized or came for follow-up visit from inpatient department, Thammasat hospital from October 2012 to January 2013. The experimental group received the self-management program that wasdeveloped based on self-management concept, whereas the control group received standard care. Datawere collected using the Modified Borg’s score for dyspnea, and the Minnesota living with heart failurequestionnaire for quality of life. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistic, Wilcoxon Signed Ranksand Mann-Whitney U tests.
Result: Among thirty-four heart failure patients, the experimental group (n = 17) demonstrated significant decreasein dyspnea level from baseline (p < 0.001), significant increase in quality of life from baseline (p < 0.001),and had the better results than the control group. There was also significant reduction in re-admission ratethan the control group (p < 0.01).
Discussion and Conclusion: Self-management program is effective in disease control, reduction of exacerbation, decrease of re-admission and quality of life improvement for individuals with heart failure, and can be used in patients with poor controlled heart failure. Further study should be replicated using larger groups and longer time.
Key words: Self-management program, Dyspnea, Re-admission, Quality of life, Patients with congestive heart failure
