Nurse-led telephone interventions for people with cardiac disease: A review of the research literature

Background: Nurse-led telephone follow-up offers a relatively inexpensive method of delivering education and support for assisting recovery in the early discharge period; however, its efficacy is yet to be determined. Aim: To perform a critical integrative review of the research literature addressing the effectiveness of nurse-led telephone interventions for people with coronary heart disease (CHD). Methods: A literature search of five health care databases; Sciencedirect, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, Pubmed, Proquest and Medline to identify journal articles between 1980 and 2009. People with cardiac disease were considered for inclusion in this review. The search yielded 128 papers, of which 24 met the inclusion criteria. Results: A total of 8330 participants from 24 studies were included in the final review. Seven studies demonstrated statistically significant differences in all outcomes measured, used two group experimental research design and valid and reliable instruments. Some positive effects were detected in eight studies in regards to nurse-led telephone interventions for people with cardiac disease and no differences were detected in nine studies. Discussion: Studies with some positive effects generally had stronger research designs, large samples, used valid and reliable instruments and extensive nurse-led educative interventions. Conclusion: The results suggest that people with cardiac disease showed some benefits from nurse-led/delivered telephone interventions. More rigorous research into this area is needed

Staying out of trouble: intentions of young male offenders.

During the fall of 2005, we interviewed a sample of 103 young men aged 18 to 21 imprisoned at a young offender's prison in England. Drawing on the theory of planned behavior, as well as the theory of cognitive transformation, our purpose was to investigate prisoners' reports of their likelihood of reoffending following release from prison. Primary explanatory factors included measures of attitudes, behavioral control, and subjective norms. Attitudes measured inmates' plans of what they would do following release. Behavioral control variables included indicators of life control and self-efficacy. Subjective norms measured the number of peers inmates reported ever being imprisoned. Prison activities and background characteristics were also modeled. The data were analyzed using regression techniques and structural equation modeling. Intentions to stay out of trouble were most strongly associated with self-efficacy and the number of imprisoned friends reported. Intentions were also associated with the specificity of postrelease plans and life control. Offenders' feelings of life control were stronger among those who had more frequent contact with family members and friends while in prison. Employment prior to prison and family relationships were predictive of contacts with family and friends in prison. Specific policies consistent with our findings include encouragement of contact with family members and friends. In addition, interventions that help offenders make specific plans and increase feelings of control and self-efficacy have promise in helping released offenders successfully complete the transition from prison to the community