Abstract
Backgrounds: Although patients with heart failure (HF) frequently experience considerable symptom burden and require significant care similar to those with cancer, most HF patients do not receive timely intervention due to the absence of standardized method for identifying those in need of palliative care. Several tools have been employed to assess palliative care needs and identify eligible patients. However, their validity and reliability have yet to be fully examined worldwide. We sought to assess the validity and reliability of The Needs Assessment Tool: Progressive Disease-Heart Failure (NAT: PD-HF) in Japanese HF population. Methods: We enrolled consecutive HF patients admitted in our university hospital between February and May 2023 and their caregivers were also included. The NAT: PD-HF were translated into Japanese by our professional multidisciplinary team in accordance with cultural and medical background. We assessed the internal consistency of the NAT: PD-HF with Cronbach`s alpha, and the inter-rater and test-retest reliability with Cohen`s kappa. After using this tool, patients, caregivers, and health care providers were asked whether the tool adequately identify their burden and care needs. Results: During the study period, 75 patients, 67 caregivers, and 17 health care providers agreed to participate. Cronbach's alpha was 0.80 and the minimum Kappa coefficient was 0.73 for inter-rater reliability and 0.83 for test-retest reliability. Seventy-one patients (94%) and 64 caregivers (95%) found this tool useful to identify their burden and care needs. Seventy patients (93%) and 63 caregivers (94%) felt that the tool will improve the quality of care. Sixteen health care providers (94%) also believed this tool was helpful to understand the burden and care needs of both patients and caregivers. However, 7 of them (41%) considered they may not have enough time to use the tool in their daily clinical practice. Conclusions: The NAT: PD-HF was suggested to be a reliable and potentially valid tool even among Japanese HF patients. This tool was very well accepted by patients, caregivers, and health care providers to identify burden and care needs. Further follow-up studies are needed to examine the prognostic impact of using this tool.
Published Version
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