Determinants of Self-Care in Patients With Heart Failure: Observations From a Developing Country in the Middle East

• Published in: Journal of transcultural nursing Vol. 31; no. 3; p. 294
• Main Authors: Massouh, Angela, Abu Saad Huijer, Huda, Meek, Paula, Skouri, Hadi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01.05.2020
• Subjects: social support; heart failure; symptom management; clinical areas; self-care confidence; cardiovascular; self-care
• ISSN: 1552-7832
• DOI: 10.1177/1043659619865587

Self-care is recognized as a means for improving outcomes of heart failure (HF), yet studies have not addressed what predicts successful self-care in collectivist cultures like Lebanon. : Self-care was measured, using the Arabic Self-Care of HF index, in 100 participants with HF (76% males; mean age 67.59) recruited from a tertiary medical center. : Self-care was suboptimal, with mean scores of 67.26, 66.96, and 69.5 for self-care maintenance, management, and confidence. Better HF knowledge, social support, and self-care confidence and lower New York Heart Association score predicted better self-care maintenance. Better knowledge, social support, and self-care maintenance, no recent hospitalization, and being unemployed predicted better self-care confidence. Better self-care confidence, maintenance, and HF knowledge predicted better self-care management. : HF self-care in Lebanon is suboptimal. Nurses need to identify facilitators of and barriers to self-care particular to this population. Interventions targeting HF knowledge, confidence, and caregiver support are expected to improve self-care in Lebanese patients.