A telephone-delivered empowerment intervention with patients diagnosed with heart failure

BACKGROUND: Heart failure (HF) is a major public health problem. Case management by nurses using telephone follow-up has been suggested as a convenient and effective mechanism to promote the self-management of HF. Similarly, a patient empowerment approach to the management of chronic disease has been suggested as one that may nurture self-management in individuals with chronic illness. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a telephone-delivered empowerment intervention (EI) on clinically and theoretically relevant outcomes in patients with HF, including purposeful participation in goal attainment, self-management of HF, and perception of functional health. The EI was guided by Rogers' Science of Unitary Human Beings person-environment process. METHODS: A convenience sample of men and women aged 21 years and older with a clinical diagnosis of HF was obtained from a metropolitan hospital located in the southwestern United States. The participants were randomly assigned to the control group (n = 45) or El group (n = 45). All participants received standardized HF patient education; the intervention group also received an El delivered through telephone follow-up calls from a registered nurse. Repeated-measures analysis of variance was used to evaluate intervention effects. RESULTS: The telephone - delivered El facilitated self-management of HF through self-care activities in El group members. CONCLUSION: The knowledge gained from this study provides a beginning understanding of strategies to enhance health care providers' ability to facilitate self-management of HF among patients diagnosed with HF.