The Impact of Telephone-based Peer Education and Follow-up on Self-care Behaviors in Patients with Heart Failure: A Randomized Clinical Trial

Background: Telemedicine is currently being considered as a way to promote patients' self-care behaviors. In addition to nurses, peers can also play a role in distance education as individuals who share a common experience with the disease. Therefore, this study was conducted to determine the impact of telephone-based peer education and follow-up on self-care behaviors in patients with heart failure. Materials and Methods: This two-group clinical trial study was conducted from May to August ۲۰۲۴ with the participation of ۷۴ hospitalized patients at Farshchian Hospital in Hamedan. The samples were selected conveniently and randomly assigned to two intervention (n=۳۷) and control (n=۳۷) groups. The control group received only education during discharge, while the intervention group received education using peer education videos for one month, this included eight ۲۰ to۳۰ minute self-care education videos, with weekly follow-ups. Informed consent was obtained. Demographic information questionnaires and the Self-Care of Heart Failure Index (SCHFI) were completed before and one month after the intervention. Data were analyzed using Chi-square, Fisher's exact test, and paired t-test. Results: Most of the patients with heart failure were classified as class II (۸۳.۳% in the peer group and ۷۷.۱% in the control group). The results showed no significant statistical difference between the demographic variables, and self-care behaviors of the two groups before the intervention (p > ۰.۰۵). However, in the peer group, the average score of self-care behaviors before the intervention was ۵۴.۱۸±۶.۴۳ and increased to ۶۹.۰۵±۷.۲۰ after the intervention. This difference was statistically significant (p<۰.۰۵). Additionally, after the intervention, there was a significant statistical difference in self-care behaviors between the peer education group and the control group (p<۰.۰۵). Conclusion: Telephone-based peer education and follow-up are effective in influencing patients' self-care behaviors. This method can be a suitable approach to enhancing patients' self-care behaviors within the realm of telemedicine.

کلیدواژه ها:

Peer education ، peer support ، self-care ، telemedicine ، heart failure