Role of Cardiovascular Nurses in Preventative Care

This article discusses the role of cardiovascular nurses in preventative care for cardiovascular diseases. It highlights the importance of nurses in educating patients, facilitating behavioral change, and providing guidance on nutrition. Nurses play a crucial role in reducing the prevalence of cardiovascular diseases through their knowledge and interventions.

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Role of Cardiovascular Nurses in Preventative Care
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Cardiovascular disease (CVD), also referred to as diseases of the heart, are basically the health
complications that involve blocked or narrowed blood vessels, blood clots or structural problems,
and thus becoming potential causals of various heart complications. The most common types of
cardiovascular diseases are High blood pressure, Coronary artery disease, stroke, peripheral
artery disease, arrhythmia, congestive heart failure, and cardiac arrest among others
(Papageorgiou, 2016). In the preceding years, CVD has been a forefront cause of premature
mortality as well as morbidity globally. In Australia, particularly, CVDs have been a big menace
that the government and various health stakeholders are doing their best to eradicate completely.
Other than just treating already infected individuals, taking preventive measures against CVD is
a viable approach to reducing its prevalence. Although various healthcare professionals have a
role in preventative care, nurses, in particular, have a significant part to play. When handling
patients, it has emerged clearly that nurses would effectively take part in CVD preventative care.
Compiled henceforth is a vivid inscription of the role of nurses in the preventative care of
cardiovascular diseases.
In healthcare settings, nurses have the highest contact time with patients more than other
healthcare staff. As such, they have a duty not only to aid in treatment processes for
cardiovascular diseases but also in prevention attempts. Patients of various CVDs are bound to
suffer a heart attack at one time if their conditions are not effectively managed. Nurses should
efficiently conduct cardiac rehabilitation to heart attack patients to aid them to return to their
normal daily life activities and prevent another attack (Mosby, 2009). Patient education, patient
exercise training, modification of risk factors and overall well-being of patients are examples of
evidence-based nurse-led preventative measures that effectively curb CVDs. Below are key areas

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of competence that cardiovascular nurses should be well acquitted with for effective prevention
of CVD (Perk, et al., 2007).
It is of great importance that nurses have deep knowledge on the risk factors that fuel CVDs.
Smoking, for example, is scientifically proven to increase the risk of heart complication by 2-4
times in comparison to non-smokers. Hypertension on the other side increases the pressure of
pumping blood through the system and thus having a severe effect on the endothelium by
increasing the risk of coagulation (Schmidt, et al., 2010). Age is another risk factor. Younger
people are less vulnerable in comparison to older people who are at a higher risk. With this in
mind, nurses get a focus point where they intensify care provision. Other risk factors that nurses
should be aware of are diabetes, obesity, poor diet, socioeconomic status, cholesterol, and
physical inactivity.
It is, therefore, the role of all nurses in their line of duty to create awareness to their patients on
various risk factors. Additionally, they ought to inform patients how the risk factors can be
reduced. Clear communication should be established by nurses and allow patients to express
their knowledge of the risk factors they know (AACN, 2009). Nurses should then add on more
and how they can be gradually reduced. For any success, however, the patients must
acknowledge the existence of an issue and want to change. Jointly, the nurse and the individual
should come up with lifestyle modifications that are fit for the patient, all factors are taken into
consideration (European Society of Cardiology and Other Societies on Cardiovascular Disease
Prevention in Clinical Practice, 2016). Additionally, nurses need to encourage their client to talk
with family and other close affiliates on significant lifestyle modifications such as dietary and
exercise.

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Nurses also have a role to play in guiding behavioral change among patients and high-risk
persons for them to adopt a healthy lifestyle. Cognitive behavioral therapy is one effective
approach that can nurses embark on (Victor, et al., 2016). Many cases of CVD emanate from the
patients indulging in risky behaviors that fuel the disease. For effective prevention of CVD
therefore, nurses should ensure that persons under their care acknowledge that indeed there are
behavioral problems and subsequently realizes the need for change (Carrington & Stewart,
2014). There exist a wide array of cognitive behavioral strategies that nurses can embark on so as
to impart the desired behavioral change. Motivational interviewing, for example, motivates
individuals to embark only on behaviors that support a healthy lifestyle. Subsequently, this
prevents the occurrence or re-occurrence of CVD.
Nutrition is a key determinant of the presence or absence of CVD. It is, therefore, a nursing role
to provide guidance on the appropriate dietary habits that lower the risk of CVD. Nurses should,
for example, advice their patient to limit energy intake to the amount required for maintenance of
a healthy weight. Subsequently, there will be minimal cases of overweight individuals and thus
eliminating one of CVD risk factors (Fuhrman, 2016). Nurses should also advise against diets
with high cholesterol levels. Excessive fatty acids, for example, increases the levels of
lipoproteins in the body and thus predisposing individuals to CVD. As such, ingestion of the
right types of foods is an essential preventative approach.
In secondary prevention on CVDs, adherence to medication is an issue of great essence. This is
more so important for people with acute cardiovascular conditions. Reduction of morbidity and
mortality rate largely relies on cardiovascular medications. Sadly, however, such medications are
lifelong and many patients struggle to adhere to them unsuccessfully. As such, in addition to

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informing patients about the benefits of adhering to medications, nurses should offer support for
patients to correctly make good treatment decisions (Burnier, 2018). According to statistics from
the World Health Organization (WHO), researchers reported that a combination of smoking
cessation and adherence to medication reduced the chances of a second heart attack among
patients by 75%. Nurses should be aware that they have a responsibility to contribute to the
achievement of these reductions.
Nurses have a civic role in the prevention of CVD. Introduction and implementation of public
health primary interventions is an effective prevention strategy that nurses can engage in.
lifestyle interventions particularly play a significant role in the prevention of CVD (Andrade, et
al., 2015). Facilitating more physical activities, adjusting with disease patterns, supporting the
cessation of tobacco and alcohol use, facilitating, maintenance of healthy weight and advising on
health diet are examples of effective lifestyle change interventions (Lanuza, et al., 2011). Nurses
are responsible for designing and applying these interventions at a community as well as at an
individual level. Screening for risk factors and introducing personalized intervention is an
example of individual-level strategies (Anderson, 2015). With nurses efficiently playing this
role, they impact those around them with substantial knowledge on the prevention of CVD.
It is also a role for nurses to focus preventive efforts on parties that will benefit the most. In this
case, it is to the patients, those considered to be at high risk as well as family members of the
relatives (Berra, et al., 2011). Family members who are close to the CVD patients are considered
high-risk element due to genetic factors, associative mating in spouses and leading a common
lifestyle within the family. Nurses should, therefore, avail relevant education and care to
identified parties and encourage a directional lifestyle change for the family as a whole

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(Anderson, 2015). Additionally, when designing preventive programs, nurses should ensure that
they select a flexible approach as well as an appropriate setting (Berra, et al., 2011). As such, the
program will allow members of the targeted community to easily access the preventive care
services being offered.
In addition to interventions in lifestyle, adjunctive drug therapies are essential for high-risk
patients. As such, on top of encouraging adherence, nurses should have an effective mechanism
for cardioprotective medications prescription. Diabetes, Blood Pressure and Lipids should be
managed effectively using already in place protocols (Crawford, et al., 2009). Subsequently,
goals based on guidelines will be achieved successfully. In territories where nurses are not
legally allowed to prescribe cardioprotective medications, for example, they should act in liaison
with the authorized personnel to ensure that their patients get their doses (Olson, 2014).
Subsequently, the global prevalence of the CVD menace will be gradually eradicated.
Educating patients is also a role for nurses to play. Many cases of readmission for CVD are
attributable to lack of education as well as home management skills at the time of discharge. The
most common causes are lack of know-how on how to adjust to disease patterns as well as
modify lifestyles (Hayman, et al., 2015). Diabetes patients, for example, should be educated on
the right dietary that will either lower or increase blood sugar levels depending on the diabetes
type. As such, this knowledge gap can be closed by nurses educating patients as well as their
families on various home management interventions (Victor, et al., 2016). Subsequently,
patients, as well as their family members, will be able to accurately follow medical regimens and
provide relevant care. As a result, the quality of life for patients is improved by a great scale. On
top of this, a supportive environment is created by family members for patients. Patient

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education also effectively reduces complications in the event of a cardiac arrest as well as the
possibilities of a new cardiac arrest re-occurring.
Conclusively, it is without doubts that nurses have crucial roles to play in the prevention of
cardiovascular disease. It is also beyond reasonable doubts that CVD has become an enormous
burden of mortality and morbidity in our society. In health systems, nurses form one of the
biggest workforces. Consequently, they have an imperative responsibility to participate in
treatment, care, and prevention of CVD. The need for nurses to have vivid awareness of various
risk factors that trigger or accelerate CVD had been comprehensively discussed. Also discussed
are the various roles that nurses play in preventative care of CVD. Among the highlighted are;
the role of educating patients and their families, the role of introduction and implementation of
public health primary interventions, as well as the role of facilitating behavioral change and
proper nutrition. Lastly, it is recommendable that the government timely nurture a sufficient
number of cardiovascular nurses. Subsequently, they will meet the nursing roles and
responsibilities in preventative care of CVD by meeting the high demand for care from patients
and high-risk individuals.

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