Educational Needs Assessment for Cardiac Rehabilitation Patients

Abstract

Background: Education is effective in improving the quality of life of patients, and needs assessment is an important factor in effective education. Objectives: This study aimed to assess the educational needs of cardiac patients referred to the cardiac rehabilitation (CR) department. Methods: The list of educational topics required by cardiac patients was determined using the fish bowl technique. In the next step, the checklist was completed by patients and healthcare providers based on the five-point Likert scale. Results: The mean score of “The role of a healthy diet in the prevention and management of heart disease” was 3.79 ± 0.37 for patients and 4.65 ± 0.56 for healthcare providers. Conclusions: The results of the study show that educational needs are different from the perspectives of patients and healthcare providers. Therefore, in addition to paying attention to the priorities expressed by patients, it is essential to design and implement necessary interventions to increase patients' perceived sensitivity to other educational topics.