Phase II cardiac rehabilitation in rural Northland

Cardiovascular disease has been identified as a leading cause of mortality in New Zealand. It is therefore of little surprise that the New Zealand Health Strategy has identified cardiovascular health as a target area for improved management. A main contributor to cardiovascular disease is coronary artery disease, which can lead to acute coronary syndromes such as myocardial infarction. Cardiac rehabilitation should be offered to those who have suffered from a coronary event, with the aim of improving quality of life for the client and reducing the incidence of further cardiac episodes. Since hospital stays are, on average, less than one week following a cardiac event such as a myocardial infarction, the majority of such rehabilitation is delivered in the primary care setting. This descriptive, exploratory, qualitative study focused on the perceptions and experiences of nurses involved with the delivery of cardiac rehabilitation in a rural health care setting in a Northland region of New Zealand. The paper draws upon two focus groups the researcher conducted with a total of twelve nurses. A general inductive approach was used to analyse the collected data. Five main themes were identified in relation to cardiac rehabilitation: "foundations of rural cardiac rehabilitation", "focal points", "influencing factors", "here and now", and "future requirements". This study provides insight into how cardiac rehabilitation is approached in one rural setting of New Zealand. Furthermore, it identifies some ideas for the further development of cardiac rehabilitation services.