Self-care and its predictors among patients with heart failure in Karachi, Pakistan.

Background: Self-care in heart failure (HF) is essential to improve Quality of Life (QoL) and reduce hospital readmissions. It is a well-researched phenomenon in western countries but still unexplored in developing countries like Pakistan. Aim: The aim of this study was to explore the level of self-care behaviour (SCB) and its associated factors among patients with HF in Karachi Pakistan. Methods: In a cross-sectional survey, SCB was measured from 230 patients with HF, using the European Heart Failure Self-Care Behavior scale (EHFSCBs_9). Its associated factors were assessed via a self-developed checklist prepared by the researcher (lead author). Results: The overall mean of SCB was 29.73+/-7.03. As a result of multi-variable regression analysis, out of the six variables, only three variables were significantly associated with SCB, explaining the 23.4% variance. These variables were education; income; and chronicity of HF diagnosis. Conclusion: The findings of the study suggest that public health initiatives in the form of supportive-educative interventions are a dire need to enhance self-care among patients with HF