title: Role of self-care in the patient with heart failure.
abstract: Optimal outcomes and quality of life for patients with heart failure depend on engagement in effective self-care activities. Self-care is a complex set of activities and most clinicians are not adequately prepared to assist their patients to engage in effective self-care. In this paper, we provide an overview of self-care that includes definitions, the importance of self-care to outcomes, the physiologic basis for better outcomes with good self-care, cultural perspectives of self-care, and recommendations for the improvement of self-care. Promotion of effective self-care by all clinicians could substantially reduce the economic and personal burden of repeated rehospitalizations among patients with heart failure.
authors.affiliation: University of Kentucky, College of Nursing, Lexington, KY 40536-0232, USA. dmoser@uky.edu
authors.forename: Debra K
authors.initials: DK
authors.lastname: Moser
authors.forename: Victoria
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Dickson
authors.forename: Tiny
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Jaarsma
authors.forename: Christopher
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Stromberg
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Riegel
mesh_terms: D001294:Attitude to Health; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D006801:Humans; D010349:Patient Compliance; D012648:Self Care / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards; D016896:Treatment Outcome