Self-care and quality of life in patients with advanced heart failure: the effect of a supportive educational intervention.

OBJECTIVE: The goal of this study was to determine the effects of a supportive educational nursing intervention on self-care abilities, self-care behavior, and quality of life of patients with advanced heart failure.

DESIGN: The study design was an experimental, random assignment.

SETTING: The study was located at the University Hospital in Maastricht, The Netherlands.

PATIENTS: The study included 179 patients (mean age 73 years, 58% men, New York Heart Association classification III and IV) admitted to a university hospital with symptoms of heart failure.

OUTCOME MEASURES: Outcome measures included self-care abilities (Appraisal of Self-care Agency Scale), self-care behavior (Heart Failure Self-care Behavior Scale), 3 dimensions of quality of life (functional capabilities, symptoms, and psychosocial adjustment to illness), and overall well-being (Cantril's ladder of life).

INTERVENTION: The intervention patients received systematic education and support by a nurse in the hospital and at home. Control patients received routine care.

RESULTS: Self-care abilities did not change as a result of the intervention, but the self-care behavior in the intervention group was higher than the self-care behavior in the control group during follow-up. The effect of the supportive educational intervention on quality of life was limited. The 3 dimensions of quality of life improved after hospitalization in both groups, with no differences between intervention and control group as measured at each follow-up measurement. However, there was a trend indicating differences between the 2 groups in decrease in symptom frequency and symptom distress during the 9 months of follow-up.

CONCLUSION: A supportive educational nursing intervention is effective in improving self-care behavior in patients with advanced (New York Heart Association class III-IV) heart failure; however, a more intensive intervention is needed to show effectiveness in improving quality of life.