The Relationship Of Health-Promoting Behaviors To Hospital Admissions In Adults With Congestive Heart Failure

Successful medical treatment for acute health conditions has precipitated an increase in the number of chronic health problems. One such chronic condition is congestive heart failure. Heart failure is the number one discharge diagnosis among Medicare recipients. The financial burden for the management of this chronic condition is astronomical. Health care providers are commissioned to manage this chronic illness prudently. The purpose of this correlational descriptive study was to determine if there was any relationship between health-promoting behaviors and readmission rates of adults with congestive heart failure. A convenience sample of participants was obtained from a hospital facility. Subjects were asked to fill out two research tools, the Demographic Data Sheet and the Health-Promoting Lifestyle Profile II. The theoretical framework used was the Pender Health Promotion Model. The null hypothesis was tested which stated, There will be no relationship between health perceptions and related hospital admissions among adults with congestive heart 1 1 1 failure. Data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics and the Pearson product-moment correlation. Findings of the study failed to reject the null hypothesis. Correlational statistics were then used to determine whether a relationship existed between any demographic factor or one of the Health-Promoting Lifestyle II subscales and hospitalizations. Statistical significance was noted between the health responsibility subscale on the Health-Promoting Lifestyle Profile II and hospitalizations. The study has implications for nursing research, education, and practice. Recommendations for future studies include implementation of qualitative research to determine the effect of personal characteristics and health beliefs on health-promoting behaviors