Patients with heart failure experience a high level of symptoms and symptom burden. Nurses should target interventions to decrease frequency, severity, distress and overall symptom burden and improve HRQOL.

No abstract

2016-03-19T19:12:06

No abstract

Factors rated as affecting food intake most often by patients with HF were decreased hunger sensations, diet restrictions, fatigue, shortness of breath, nausea, anxiety, and sadness. Factors rated most often by healthy elders as affecting food intake were diminished hunger sensations, early satiety, eating alone, and decreased senses of taste and smell. Among patients with HF, many factors unique from those present due to age were reported to affect food intake.

No abstract

No abstract

Background Nurse researchers are exploring new ways of understanding heart failure (HF), spousal/partner dyad’s self care. Aims To assess the response to a new instrument developed to measure dyadic HF care type in HF patients and spousal/partner caregivers and explore relationships between type and other variables. Methods Dyads answered a written criterion referenced question related to dyadic HF care type. The relationships between the dyadic care type and sociodemographic and clinical variables were explored using χ 2, ϕ coefficient. Degree of agreement within the dyad on particular type was assessed by kappa statistic. Results A total of 19 dyads were accrued. Patients were aged 71.7±9.7 years (mean±SD), male (n=15), and NYHA Class IIIB/IV (79%). Caregivers were aged 69.2±11.7 years, female (n=15), married for 45.2±14.1 years. HF patient and caregiver dyads were easily able to self select a dyadic type given specific criteria. Agreements ranged from 21% to 5%, by type, resulting in a kappa of 0.28 (p = 0.025) when patient self reported type was compared to their caregiver’s type. Conclusions Now that we are able to measure types of dyadic HF care, understanding how dyadic care type relates to self care outcomes is needed to advance the science.