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Contributions Of Supportive Relationships To Heart Failure Self-Care, Margaret Sebern, Barbara Riegel

College of Nursing Faculty Research and Publications

Supportive relationships are known to improve outcomes for persons with heart failure (HF). Supporters may do so by improving self-care, but little is known about the influence of supportive relationships on HF self-care.

The purpose of this study was to explore background characteristics associated with supportive relationships, and the contribution of supportive relationships to HF self-care. The construct of shared care was used to operationalize supportive relationships. Shared care refers to a system of interpersonal processes (communication, decision making, and reciprocity) used in close relationships to exchange support. A cross sectional design was employed recruiting 75 HF dyads.

Older patients …