PATIENTS OVERCOME ANXIETY AND ARE ENCOURAGED TO BE PHYSICAL ACTIVETHROUGH EXERCISE-BASED CARDIAC REHABILITATION.

Purpose. Patients face demanding and challenging processes when they experience cardiac problems. Exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation is established to enable these patients to move forward to lead a satisfying life. It is recognised that patients fail to join all sessions of the rehabilitation resulting in an alarming problem. It is outlined that barriers for better adherence are related to the fact that the services do not sufficiently address the patients’ specific situations. Thus, the request for firmly addressing rehabilitation as responsive to the patients’ needs is of paramount importance, and it seems to be crucial to further emphasise the individuals lived experiences when exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation is followed. Hence this study aims to investigate how patients experience exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation in a hospital setting.
Methods. This study, which included nine men and two women with unstable angina pectoris or non-ST elevation-myocardial infarction, used a phenomenological-hermeneutic approach. The patients were followed by field observations during exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation. Focus group interviews were conducted at programme end, and individual interviews were performed 1-2 months later. A phenomenological hermeneutic interpretation was conducted, comprising three methodological steps: naïve reading, structural analysis and comprehensive interpretation.
Results. The preliminary findings are that although physically and especially mentally challenged, the patients were encouraged to maintain an active lifestyle after exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation. Three themes were identified: anxiety to exercise, whereby the patients are initially afraid to provoke another heart attack; an encouraging training-team, whereby the patients support each other to begin exercising; and growing confidence in the heart, whereby the patients overcome anxiety and dare to be physically active.

Conclusions. Exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation provides a comfort-giving setting that offers peer support and a positive physical perception leading to confidence into that the heart endures physical activity. In addition to serving as physical guidance, exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation offers valuable mental support. The patients find help to overcome an initial anxiety and move forward towards a physically active life featuring a feeling of improved health and new strength. By acquiring this knowledge, future patients might be motivated to participate in the programme.