Lifestyle changes following acute myocardial infarction: patients perspectives
Carol Condon1, Geraldine McCarthy
1School of Nursing and Midwifery, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland. carol.condon@ucc.ie
Insights
Patients diagnosed with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) face challenges adopting lifestyle changes post-discharge. Support is needed for smoking cessation, stress management, and family involvement to improve recovery and quality of life.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Public Health
- Qualitative Research
Background:
- Cardiovascular disease is a leading cause of death in Ireland, with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) being a significant factor.
- AMI diagnosis necessitates major lifestyle adjustments, impacting patients' quality of life and chronic illness adaptation.
- Key lifestyle changes include diet modification, smoking cessation, increased physical activity, and stress management.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore patient perspectives on lifestyle changes after experiencing acute myocardial infarction (AMI).
- To understand the lived experiences of individuals navigating lifestyle modifications post-AMI diagnosis.
Main Methods:
- A descriptive qualitative approach was employed.
- In-depth interviews were conducted with ten participants six weeks post-discharge.
- Thematic analysis was used to analyze interview data.
Main Results:
- Four emergent themes: lifestyle warning signs, taking responsibility, professional support, and future outlook.
- Patients experienced difficulties implementing multiple lifestyle changes simultaneously, particularly smoking cessation and stress management.
- Lack of community-based professional support and overprotective family dynamics presented challenges.
Conclusions:
- Primary care services and cardiac rehabilitation programs require enhancement to better support AMI patients.
- Providing information to families is crucial to alleviate anxiety and fear, aiding patient recovery.
- Addressing the multifaceted challenges of lifestyle change is essential for improving patient outcomes post-AMI.
Background:
Cardiovascular disease accounts for 39% of all deaths in Ireland each year. Many of these deaths are due to acute myocardial infarction (AMI). The diagnosis of AMI has major implications for individuals in terms of health and social gain, health related quality of life and living and adapting to a chronic illness. The diagnosis requires lifestyle changes such as changes to diet, smoking habit, physical activity, and stress management.
Aims:
The aim of this descriptive qualitative study was to explore patients' perspectives of making lifestyle changes following AMI.
Methods:
Using a descriptive qualitative approach, ten participants were interviewed 6 weeks following discharge about their experiences. Data were collected using in depth interviews and analysed using thematic analysis.
Research Findings:
Four themes emerged: lifestyle warning signs, taking responsibility for lifestyle changes, professional support and looking forward to the future. The findings offer insight into the everyday realities, which patients experience regarding lifestyle changes particularly in relation to smoking cessation and stress management. The difficulties encountered by participants 6 weeks following discharge reflect the implementation of too many life style changes at once as well as the lack of professional help in the community to support participants in their endeavours to make lifestyle changes. In addition, overprotection by family members was a source of frustration and aggravation for participants.
Conclusion:
The study highlights the need for the development of primary care services and cardiac rehabilitation programmes to support patients as well as providing information to families to reduce anxiety and fear.
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