Research Projects
Title
Developing a Supportive Care Service for Patients following Percutaneous Cardiac Intervention (PCI)
Research team
Sue Francombe, CHD Lead Nurse; Angela Knott, Cardiology Specialist Nurse, Aneurin Bevan Health Board
Summary
Coronary heart disease (CHD) is a leading cause of death in the United Kingdom, particularly in Wales, where the death rate is greater than in the majority of countries in Western Europe (Welsh Assembly Government, 2009). Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) is sometimes called angioplasty, stenting or percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) and describes a range of interventions used to treat people with blocked or narrowed coronary arteries (The Cardiologist, 2012).
The aim of the project was to understand the patient experience of PCI and use this to develop a post PCI service that was responsive, timely and patient centred. The main method was patient focus groups, which allowed a flexible and direct means to ensure the patient’s experience was understood and shared. The stakeholder group, which consisted of all professionals involved in the PCI patient pathway, then used this information to direct their action plan and implement new and innovative ways of working, using very little financial resource, to enable the provision of a cardiac rehabilitation programme for this group of people. At the start of the project, 15% of patients were referred to cardiac rehabilitation following PCI and on completion of the project, 84% of patients were referred to cardiac rehabilitation. Added to this, the outcome from the second focus group, which was held at the end of the project, indicated that overall patients were more satisfied with the support and care they received following discharge.
This project was supported by the Foundation of Nursing Studies Patients First Programme in partnership with the Burdett Trust for Nursing.
Start / end dates
December 2011-February 2013
Related links
Report: https://www.fons.org/Resources/Documents/Project%20Reports/PFPCIWalesJuLY2013.pdf
