Tailoring and targeting interventions for women with heart disease: the need for gender-based approaches

Implications for practice and research: Increasingly, there is recognition that women with heart disease have greater psychological morbidity than men. Owing to increased rates of depression and other factors, such as older age, women are less likely to adhere to behaviour change strategies and attend cardiac rehabilitation (CR). A tailored and targeted approach, using a gender-based framework and a theoretically derived behaviour change strategy, can improve depressive symptoms in women following an acute cardiac event. The worth of tailoring and targeting strategies to women's readiness to change behaviours as well as the likely benefit of providing a gender-based approach to care delivery.