THE EFFECT OF PRACTICAL EDUCATION PROGRAMMING FOR THE ELDERLY (PEPE) ON THE REHOSPITALIZATION RATE OF OLDER CONGESTIVE HEART FAILURE PATIENTS: A QUASI EXPERIMENTAL STUDY (OLDER PATIENTS).
Contributors: University of Southern Mississippi.
Published: 1993
Number of pages: 157
Subjects: Education, Educational Psychology.; Health Sciences, Nursing.; Health Sciences, Education.; Education, Health.; Gerontology.
Description: The purpose of the present quasi-experimental study was to determine whether an intervention involving specific methods of presentation could reduce the incidence of rehospitalization within a group of older congestive heart failure subjects. A synthesis of previous research on adult learning, gerontology, discharge planning, patient teaching, and rehospitalization was the foundation of the study.

Four research hypotheses were addressed. First, there would be a significant difference on the criterion variable rate of rehospitalization between subjects who received PEPE and the control subjects who received standard discharge teaching. The second and third research questions hypothesized that the rate of rehospitalization would be significantly related to a composite set of variables including age, gender, marital status and change in medication regimen on the day of discharge.

The fourth research question tested for a significant nonconstant difference between change in medication regimen across treatment groups on the criterion variable rate of rehospitalization.

The sample consisted of 80 subjects admitted and discharged from an acute care hospital with a diagnosis of congestive heart failure. All subjects were between 65 and 85 years of age.

The results of the present study indicate that the first hypothesis was accepted based on R$\sp2$ =.08184; F (1,78) = 6.95253; p =.010. The composite set of variables for both the study group and the control group were not significantly related to the criterion variable. No interaction was found between change in medication regimen across treatment groups on the criterion variable rate of rehospitalization.

The findings of the present study showed that subjects taught using the PEPE method experienced a significantly lower rate of rehospitalization as predicted. However the difference between the two groups was not explained by age, gender, marital status or change in medication regimen on the day of discharge, or after the completion of the PEPE teaching.
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 54-08, Section: A, page: 2952.

Thesis (ED.D.)--THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI, 1993.

School code: 0211.