Persistent effect of nurse-led education on self-care behavior and disease knowledge in heart failure patients

Purpose:The guidelines on the management of patients with heart failure support intensive patient education on self-care.The present study aimed to evaluate the short-term and long-term impacts of a structured education provided by a qualified heart failure nurse on patients'self-care behavior and disease knowledge.Methods:One hundred fifty patients(66±12 years)hospitalized for heart failure participated in a structured one-hour educational session by a heart failure nurse.Patients completed a questionnaire comprising 15 questions(nine questions from the European Heart Failure Self-Care Behavior Scale[EHFScB-9]and six on the patients'disease knowledge)one day before and one day and six months after the educational session.Possible responses for each question ranged from 1(complete agreement)to 5(complete disagreement).Results:After the educational session,the total EHFScB-9 score improved from 24.31±6.98 to 14.94±6.22,and the disease knowledge score improved from 18.03±5.44 to 10.74±4.30(both P<0.001).Scores for individual questions ranged from 1.26±0.81(adherence to the medication protocol)to 3.66±1.58(everyday weighing habits)before the education.The greatest improvement after education was observed on response to weight gain(-2.00±1.57),daily weight control(—1.77±1.64),and knowledge on the cause of patients'heart failure(-1.53±1.43).At 6-month follow-up,EHFScB-9 score was 17.33±7.23 and knowledge score was 12.34±5.30(both P<0.001 compared with baseline).No factor was predictive of an insufficient teaching effect.Conclusions:The educational program led by a qualified nurse improves patients'self-care behavior and disease knowledge with a persistent effect at 6-month follow-up.There are no patient characteristics which preclude the implementation of an educational session.