Running Head: CARDIAC/PULMONARY REHABILITATION 1

Cardiac/Pulmonary Rehabilitation

Health Promotion Project

Delaware Technical Community College Terry Campus

Population and Community Health NUR 330

Brittnay Lengle
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Assessment and Analyze

The patient population eligible for cardiac rehabilitation is based on a set of guidelines.

The patients that are eligible for cardiac rehab must have the following diagnoses. The diagnosis

that are eligible for cardiac rehab include: stable angina, Congestive heart failure, Myocardial

infarction with stents, low ejection fraction with a life vest and any type of heart surgery. Stable

angina can only be accepted if it is a secondary diagnosis to one of the diagnosis discussed

above. Cardiac disease is the number one killer in the United States, therefore the need for

cardiac rehabilitation is very high. The purpose of cardiac rehabilitation is to make the heart

muscle stronger to prevent further cardiac disease (Sue Mckinney.Cardiac Rehab). The primary

nurse at the cardiac/pulmonary rehabilitation facility interviews about 5 candidates a week for

cardiac rehabilitation. The primary nurse does not perform the pulmonary interviews, a

respiratory therapist performs the pulmonary interviews. Each patient will be in cardiac

rehabilitation for a different amount of time. Depending on the patient’s insurance depends on

how long the patient will be in cardiac rehabilitation. While performing cardiac assessments with

the primary RN I noticed the lack of education about medications, diet and cardiac disease in this

patient population. When asking patients about their heart condition most patients were

uninformed about the severity of their condition. Most patients were also uninformed about what

type of diet they needed to follow to prevent further cardiac disease.

Plan of Care

Cardiac rehabilitation patients need a significant amount of education to help prevent

further cardiac disease. As the primary nurse it is important to perform an assessment on the

patients and make sure they are healthy enough to be a candidate for rehabilitation. As the

primary nurse it is important to make sure proper education is being done. The primary nurse and
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the other workers should always be educating their patients during rehabilitation. My plan for

cardiac rehabilitation patients is to provide education on a cardiac diet. When planning it is

important to make an adequate goal that the nurse can reach. Using the smart objectives, I have

decided on a goal that I would like to achieve with this population. SMART goal stands for

specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time (Kub.2016). I plan to provide education to

cardiac Rehabilitation patients on a healthy cardiac diet. During cardiac rehabilitation, the

patients will take a test every other week to test their knowledge. At the end of rehabilitation, the

patient will take a test and will test an 80% or better on their exam.

Interventions and Evaluation

During the cardiac interview, prior to the patient starting cardiac rehabilitation, the

patient will take a twenty-five question exam on cardiac disease and a cardiac diet. The patient

will take a food plate paper that will show the RN what the patient’s diet consist of. The food

plate paper will consist of boxes the patient will check, the boxes will contain types of food

consumed daily during meals. This will give the RN a good idea of what type of diet the patient

consumes daily. During the rehabilitation process the patient will have a book about cardiac

disease and a proper cardiac diet. Each week the patient will be assigned a chapter to read. Each

chapter consist of 4-8 pages and the book is at an eighth-grade reading level. When the patient

comes into the center the patient will take a ten question quiz. This will allow for the RN to see if

the patient is reading the material outside of the center. When the patient is going to graduate

from the program the patient will take a thirty question test to evaluate the patient’s gained

knowledge from the program.

During my time spent at cardiac rehabilitation I have noticed patients reading the

material. About 95% of the patients score well on the quizzes and test. The patients tend to do
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better on the quizzes as time progresses. Generally, the patients take cardiac rehabilitation

seriously. For most cardiac patients have one of the cardiac diagnosis that makes them eligible

for cardiac rehabilitation is a huge wakeup call for them. The proposed goal is to improve

patient’s knowledge of cardiac disease and a proper cardiac diet in patients who are in cardiac

rehabilitation. This goal is to be complete once they finish cardiac rehabilitation.

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References

Cardiovascular consultants of Southern Delaware. Retrieved from:

https://www.cvcde.com/cardiac-rehabilitation.php

Kub, J., Groves, S. & Savage, C. (2016). Public Health Science and Nursing Practice,

Caring for Populations. Philadelphia, PA: F.A. Davis Company

Sue Mckinney RN, MSN. Works at Cardiac/Pulmonary Rehab Bayhealth Medical Center.