Extending cardiac rehabilitation: a telephone self-regulation pilot

Introduction: The majority of patients do not attend cardiac rehabilitation (CR); telephone programmes can help overcome access-related barriers to attendance. The Australian Centre for Heart Health developed Teleheart as a manualised, behaviourally focused home-based CR programme and wanted to assess its acceptability, feasibility and perceived impact. Method: The pilot programme was delivered to 22 patients following an acute cardiac event. Motivational interviewing was used to help patients select modules from: physical activity; dietary change; smoking cessation; and managing the ‘cardiac blues’. Acceptability and feasibility data as well as data on patients' behaviour change readiness, recognition of the importance of this, and confidence in ability to change were collected. Results: The feasibility of patient recruitment and programme acceptability were high. Readiness for behaviour change, realising its importance and confidence in ability to change increased in all patients. Conclusion: This theory-based behavioural intervention could be used within CR programmes to extend the reach of CR to patients unable or unwilling to attend a group programme.