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Heart-FaST screening tool detected barriers to self-care in HF patients
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LAS VEGAS — Preliminary results presented at the Heart Failure Society of America Annual Scientific Meeting suggest the validity of the Heart Failure Screening Tool for identifying potential barriers to self-care among patients with HF.
The Heart Failure Screening Tool (Heart-FaST) assesses patient function across three domains — physical, cognitive and emotional. The physical domain is scored from 1 to 3, the cognitive domain from 0 to 20 and the emotional domain from 7 to 49, with higher scores indicating poorer functioning and reduced likelihood of patient self-care.
The screening method was applied to a cohort of 42 patients (mean age, 71 ± 11 years; 71% male) enrolled in a disease management program in Melbourne, Australia. The construct validity of Heart-FaST was assessed according to correlation of its results with those obtained from other methods, including the Mini-Mental State Exam (MMSE) and the emotional and physical components of the Short Form (SF)-12. Patients also underwent assessment via the self-care HF index and instrumental activities of daily living.
Most participants indicated inadequate self-care maintenance (75% of patients), management (77%) and confidence (64%). Assistance with housekeeping activities was required by 52% of participants, 36% required assistance when shopping and 32% needed assistance when cooking. Transportation assistance was required by 20% of responders, and 12% required assistance with medications.
The Heart-FaST results indicated lower physical function in 33% of patients, lower cognitive functioning in 56% and lower emotional function in 31%. Researchers observed a moderate, statistically significant correlation between the physical domain of Heart-FaST and the physical component of SF-12 (r=–0.61; P<.001). Moderate, significant correlations also were observed between the Heart-FaST cognitive domain and MMSE score (r=–0.43; P=.01), and between the Heart-FaST emotional domain and the emotional component of SF-12 (r=–0.45; P=.01).
“Modest-to-strong correlations support the construct validity of Heart-FaST, and this is the first data establishing this validity,” Jan Cameron, PhD, MHSc, of Australian Catholic University in East Melbourne, Australia, said during her presentation here. “The tool may have the potential to assist clinicians in screening for critical barriers to patient engagement in self-care; however, the next step will be to examine other aspects of validity and reliability in a larger sample.”
For more information:
Cameron J. Abstract #031. Rapid-Fire Abstracts II. Presented at: the Heart Failure Society of American Annual Scientific Meeting; Sept. 14-17, 2014; Las Vegas.
Disclosure: Cameron reports serving as a consultant for the Serelaxin nurse advisory board.