Building Skill in Heart Failure Self-care: A Community Based Intervention

Building Skill in Heart Failure Self-Care: A Community Based Intervention

The purpose of this study is to pilot and feasibility test an innovative cognitive behavioral intervention to improve heart failure self-care among community dwelling older adults.The primary aim of this study is to test the effect of the intervention on improving heart failure self-care, knowledge and Health related quality of life at 1 month and 3 months. We will test three hypotheses comparing 60 older adults with heart failure randomly assigned to either the intervention or a control group:

Hypothesis 1. Participants in the intervention group will have significantly improved heart failure self-care than control participants.

Hypothesis 2. Participants in the intervention group will have significantly improved knowledge about heart failure and heart failure self-care than control participants.

Hypothesis 3. Participants in the intervention group will have significantly better Health Related Quality of Life than control participants.

A secondary exploratory aim is to assess and describe implementation feasibility of providing a heart failure self-care intervention in a community group setting.

Inclusion Criteria:

• diagnosis of chronic HF
• able to read and speak English or Spanish
• over age 50

Exclusion Criteria:

• history of prior neurological event (e.g., stroke, head injury, encephalopathy) that could cause dementia
• unable to perform tests or participate in the intervention session (e.g., inability to communicate verbally, major visual impairment, or severe and uncorrected hearing loss).
• living in a nursing home or other long term care facility