‘Betwixt and between health and illness’ – women's narratives following acute coronary syndrome

Abstract

It is essential that secondary prevention services are modelled and tailored to meet the needs of women and evaluated appropriately to ensure positive outcomes. Nursing could have a key role to play in managing and providing this support.

“Heart disease never entered my head”: Women's understanding of coronary heart disease risk factors

“…Initiating and maintaining health behaviour change is a major challenge in CHD (Kilonzo & O'Connell, 2011). The influence of a women's social environment, cultural influences and social norms must be considered as it may be difficult for women to prioritise health behaviour change (Smith et al, 2017). Moore, Frost, and Britten (2015) identified older people who manage their CHD as either "engaged self-managers" or as those who are burdened by comorbidity, insecurity and caring responsibilities.…”

“…Coronary heart disease (CHD) manifests clinically as ACS, a pathophysiological continuum that includes ST‐elevated myocardial infarction (STEMI), non‐ST‐elevated myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) and unstable angina (UA) (Walker & Lorimer, ). The women's experiences following ACS (NSTEMI and UA) have been published previously (Smith, Frazer, Hall, Hyde, & O'Connor, ); this article presents the women's narratives about their risk of CHD. The study explored how women interpreted their risk and how this influenced their treatment‐seeking decisions.…”

Increased physical activity in women following myocardial infarction improves health-related quality of life

“…Their recovery from MI can also be protracted and they face distinct gender-related issues 2. Women are less likely to attend secondary prevention programmes, which include a physical exercise component 3.…”

Patients’ Experiences of Cardiovascular Health Education and Risk Communication: A Qualitative Synthesis

“…Conversely there were also examples of care episodes where opportunities for an 'open dialogue' about symptoms, exercise, sexual activity, medication adherence, AMI diagnosis, heart disease and risk reduction, and health status were missed (Abramsohn et al, 2013;Askham et al, 2010;Attebring et al, 2005;Crane, 2001;Hagberth et al, 2008;Moore et al, 2010;Mosack & Steinke, 2009;Murie et al, 2006;Smith, Frazer, Hall, Hyde, & O'Connor, 2017;Svavarsdottir et al, 2016). What was perceived by patient participants as a "closed" communication style tended to have a negative impact on secondary prevention behavior as participants reported feeling less able to judge own abilities, less likely to exercise due to fear of recurrence, more likely to forget to take medication and use a strategy of "trial and error" to find out what they were able to do (Askham et al, 2010;Mosack & Steinke, 2009).…”

“…Participants from several studies valued cardiac rehabilitation supplemented with written booklets and videos as a source of information and support from their peers, nurses, heart specialists and physiotherapists (Hanssen et al, 2005;King et al, 2006;McSweeney & Crane, 2001;Mosack & Steinke, 2009;Pryor et al, 2014;Romppel et al, 2013;Smith et al, 2017;Wiles & Kinmonth, 2001;Yamada & Holmes, 1998).…”