The effective management of patients with congestive heart failure in long term home care setting s is important in reducing rehospitalization , emergency department visits and improving quality of life .
Congestive heart failure results in clinical signs of edema , shortness of breath , and decreased quality of life .
Telehealth interventions following hospital discharge in various setting s have been reported in the published literature as having an impact on decreasing emergency department visits , rehospitalization and quality of life .
A Randomized Trial of Telenursing to Reduce Hospitalization for Heart Failure: Patient-Centered Outcomes and Nursing Indicators
ABSTRACT This trial compared 3  post-hospitalization nursing care models for reducing  congestive heart failure ( CHF ) readmission charges during 180-days of follow-up . Subjects received in-person visits at baseline and 60 days plus 1 of 3 care modalities in the interim : ( a ) video-based home telecare ; ( b ) telephone calls ; and ( c ) usual care .  CHF-related read-mission charges were > 80 % lower in the telenursing groups compared to usual care , and these groups also had significantly fewer CHF-related emergency visits . In-person visits were more than 3 times longer than telenursing visits ( p < 0.0001 ) , only partially due to added travel time . Patient self-care adherence , medications , health status , and satisfaction did not significantly differ between groups . Telenursing can reduce CHF hospitalizations and allow increased frequency of communication with patients
The effective management of patients with congestive heart failure in long term home care setting s is important in reducing rehospitalization , emergency department visits and improving quality of life .
Congestive heart failure results in clinical signs of edema , shortness of breath , and decreased quality of life .
Telehealth interventions following hospital discharge in various setting s have been reported in the published literature as having an impact on decreasing emergency department visits , rehospitalization and quality of life .