Exploration of a nurse practitioner‐led phase two cardiac rehabilitation programme on attendance and compliance

Aims and Objectives To evaluate the impact of a nurse practitioner‐led phase two cardiac rehabilitation and secondary prevention programme on attendance and compliance. Background Despite strong evidence for the benefits of cardiac rehabilitation, attendance/completion rates remain low. Nurse practitioner‐led services have been reported as more effective than physician‐led services at increasing patient adherence to evidence‐based recommendations. However, nurse practitioner‐led programmes are uncommon and there appears to be no current evidence examining the impact of these programmes on attendance/completion rates. Methods A retrospective audit of the Country Access to Cardiac Health (CATCH) database was undertaken to identify patients who attended a nurse practitioner‐led cardiac rehabilitation programme between April 2014 and May 2016. Data from key performance indicators were exported to Stata/SE 15.0. The study utilised the Strengthening the Reporting of OBservational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) Statement: guidelines for reporting observational studies to ensure quality reporting during this study (See Data S1). Results Seventy‐seven per cent (n = 199) of participants were men, and participants had a mean age of 67 years. Half (52.5%) of participants completed all CR sessions. Male participants (78%) were more likely to complete the CR programme as compared with women (67%). Participants with a family history of cardiovascular disease and a higher number of risk factors at baseline were more likely to commence and complete the programme. Attendance and completion had a positive impact on smoking cessation. Conclusions The nurse practitioner‐led programme evaluated in this study demonstrated high levels of attendance and completion rates compared to standard programmes. This high attendance/completion rate could in turn decrease the rate of subsequent cardiac events and improve mortality and morbidity rates. Relevance to clinical practice provides valuable insights into the effectiveness of nurse practitioner‐led cardiac rehabilitation and secondary prevention on attendance/complete rates. These findings could guide future research and clinical practice development.