Main Findings : The results indicate that an intervention involving any human factor principles may nearly double an individual ’s probability of not being readmitted .
Principal Conclusions : Interventions with human factor principles reduce readmissions among HF patients .
Background : Human factors play an important role in health-care outcomes of heart failure ( HF ) patients .
A systematic review and meta- analysis of clinical trial studies on HF hospitalization may yield positive proofs of the beneficial effect of specific care management strategies .
Purpose : To investigate how the 8 guiding principles of choice , rest , environment , activity , trust , interpersonal relationships , outlook , and nutrition reduce HF readmissions .
Randomized, Controlled Trial to Improve Self-Care in Patients With Heart Failure Living in Rural Areas
Background — Patients with heart failure ( HF ) who live in rural areas have less access to cardiac services than patients in urban areas . We conducted a r and omized , clinical trial to determine the impact of an educational intervention on the composite end point of HF rehospitalization and cardiac death in this population . Methods and Results — Patients ( n=602 ; age , 66±13 years ; 41 % female ; 51 % with systolic HF ) were r and omized to 1 of 3 groups : control ( usual care ) , Fluid Watchers LITE , or Fluid Watchers PLUS . Both intervention groups included a face-to-face education session delivered by a nurse focusing on self-care . The LITE group received 2 follow-up phone calls , whereas the PLUS group received biweekly calls ( mean , 5.3±3.6 ; range , 1–19 ) until the nurse judged the patient to be adequately trained . Over 2 years of follow-up , 35 % of patients ( n=211 ) experienced cardiac death or hospitalization for HF , with no difference among the 3 groups in the proportion who experienced the combined clinical outcome ( P=0.06 ) . Although patients in the LITE group had reduced cardiac mortality compared with patients in the control group over the 2 years of follow-up ( 7.5 % and 17.7 % , respectively ; P=0.003 ) , there was no significant difference in cardiac mortality between patients in the PLUS group and the control group . Conclusions — A face-to-face education intervention did not significantly decrease the combined end point of cardiac death or hospitalization for HF . Increasing the number of contacts between the patient and nurse did not significantly improve outcome . Clinical Trial Registration — http://www . clinical trials.gov . Unique identifier : NCT00415545
Main Findings : The results indicate that an intervention involving any human factor principles may nearly double an individual ’s probability of not being readmitted .
Principal Conclusions : Interventions with human factor principles reduce readmissions among HF patients .
Background : Human factors play an important role in health-care outcomes of heart failure ( HF ) patients .
A systematic review and meta- analysis of clinical trial studies on HF hospitalization may yield positive proofs of the beneficial effect of specific care management strategies .
Purpose : To investigate how the 8 guiding principles of choice , rest , environment , activity , trust , interpersonal relationships , outlook , and nutrition reduce HF readmissions .