Abstract
BackgroundCardiac rehabilitation programs aim to improve health status and to decrease the risk of further cardiac events. Persons undergoing rehabilitation often have difficulties transferring the learned health behaviors into their daily routine after returning home and maybe to work. This includes physical activity as well as fruit and vegetable consumption. Computer-based tailored interventions have been shown to be effective in increasing physical activity as well as fruit and vegetable consumption. The aim of this study is, to support people in transferring these two learned behavior changes and their antecedents into their daily life after cardiac rehabilitation.MethodsThe study will have a randomized controlled design and will be conducted among German and Dutch people who participated in cardiac rehabilitation. The study will consist of one intervention group which will be compared to a waiting list control group. During the eight week duration of the intervention, participants will be invited to participate in the online after-care program once per week. The intervention encourages participants to define individual health behavior goals as well as action, and coping plans to reach these self-determined goals. The effectiveness of the program will be compared between the intervention condition and the control group in terms of behavior change, antecedents of behavior change (e.g., self-efficacy), ability to return to work and increased well-being. Further, subgroup-differences will be assessed including differences between the two countries, socioeconomic inequalities and across age groups.DiscussionThe present study will make a contribution to understanding how such an online-based tailored interventions enables study participants to adopt and maintain a healthy lifestyle. Implications can include how such an online program could enrich cardiac rehabilitation aftercare further.Trial registrationNTR 3706, NCT01909349
Highlights
Cardiac rehabilitation programs aim to improve health status and to decrease the risk of further cardiac events
Study aims The aim of the present study is to test the effectiveness of the online-based aftercare program “RENATA (Rehabilitation aftercare program for an optimal transfer into daily life)” for cardiac rehabilitation in order to improve physical activity and fruit and vegetable consumption
Ethical approval The study protocol was approved by the Medical Ethics Committee of Atrium Medical Centre Heerlen in the Netherlands (METC number 12-N-124) and by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Psychologie (DGPs; EK-A-SL 022013)
Summary
Cardiac rehabilitation programs aim to improve health status and to decrease the risk of further cardiac events. Persons undergoing rehabilitation often have difficulties transferring the learned health behaviors into their daily routine after returning home and maybe to work. This includes physical activity as well as fruit and vegetable consumption. Medical cardiac rehabilitation is a multifaceted approach to improve social, mental and physical recovery from any cardiac event. This rehabilitation aims at preventing future events by reducing CVD risk behaviors such as insufficient. Studies reveal that CVD patients have reduced mortality and morbidity if they improve their physical condition [13,14]. Maintenance of physical activity is associated with a 45% risk reduction for subsequent CVDs [15]
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