Knowledge and Beliefs about Risk Factor Information among Non-Attendees in Cardiac Rehabilitation Programs

Abstract

Background: Scant attention has been given to patients who decline participation in cardiac rehabilitation programs (CRP). Aim: The aim was to identify knowledge and beliefs about risk factor information associated with coronary heart disease (CHD) with a focus on sex and educational differences among CHD patients not attending a CRP. Methods: Consecutive non-attendees (n=106) completed a questionnaire focused on patients' attitudes to risk factors and CRPs. Findings: Knowledge and beliefs about risk factors important for CHD among non-attendees are overall low particularly in terms of depression, social isolation, diabetes, and hereditary factors. Female non-attendees considered information about hereditary factors and their importance for CHD to be a significantly more important issue than men. No statistically significant differences in beliefs about information onspecific or general risk factors were found. There was, however, a significant difference in educational level. Non-attendees with a higher education level had obtained more information about CHD than those with a lower education level. Conclusion: Non-attendees lack knowledge about known risk factors and their importance for CHD regardless of sex and education level. There appears to be a need to develop more personal and flexible interventions in order to increase non-attendees' knowledge about risk factors for CHD.

Discerning the impact of personal and situational variables in risk perception of coronary heart disease

“…Furthermore, it will be important to investigate risk judgements in a representative sample of individuals from the community in order to assess which people are less accurate in judging risk for CHD, in order to tailor health promoting messages/campaigns to those specific target groups and to understand the extent to which distorted risk perceptions may promote misconceptions about CHD with implications for preventive behaviours. Recent literature argues for the need for providing tailored information to cardiac patients (Almerud-Österberg et al, 2011). Our study suggests that this need is also relevant for the general population.…”