Article Review: Health Status & Self-Care in Chronic Heart Failure

This assignment is a detailed review of a quantitative research article focusing on the impact of self-care education on health status and outcomes for individuals with chronic heart failure. The review identifies the problem statement, which highlights the escalating costs associated with heart diseases and the need for effective self-care strategies. It assesses the appropriateness of the research methods, particularly the use of a Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT), and discusses the strengths and weaknesses of the study's design, including the absence of explicitly stated hypotheses. The review also covers the literature review's currency and comprehensiveness, the conceptual and theoretical framework based on the Health Promotion Model (HPM) and self-efficacy theory, and the measures taken to minimize bias. Ultimately, it provides a critical analysis of the research article's methodology and findings in the context of improving health outcomes and reducing medical costs related to chronic heart failure.

QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH
Article Review
STUDENT ID:
[Pick the date]

Introduction: Statement of problem
The problem was stated unambiguously and hence it was not difficult to locate the
same. Going through the first page of the article clearly highlights that the escalating costs are
a worry in relation to heart diseases and the various research studies have indicated the need
for self-care but there are challenges to the same. The problem is significant for nursing
considering the increasing incidence and underlying cost and resource burden. As a result, it
is essential to contain the heart related issues through self-care.
The problem statement did built a persuasive case for the new study. This is because
the problem first identifies the growing burden of care related to chronic heart problems.
Then, it establishes self-care as a potential solution which is also supported by various
studies. However, simultaneously a plethora of studies do exist which indicate the issues
associated with self-care. In this background, it makes sense to conduct a study which seeks
to explore the potential improvement in health and lowering medical costs based on the self-
care related education.
The methods used in the given study are appropriate for the research question.
Considering the research questions, the quantitative methods make sense as only through this
means the various hypotheses can be tested and tangible results can be drawn. It is essential
to note that the given study is not exploratory but rather descriptive and thereby aims to draw
results based on the measurement of impact produced by self=care education (Eriksson &
Kovalainen, 2015).
Hypothesis or Research Questions
The various hypotheses to be tested have not been stated in the study. Even though the
authors have explained in depth their intent and the procedures they have deployed for the

study along with key elements in the intervention, but still the absence of explicit research
questions and hypothesis is not justified. It would have been better if the same had been
stated by the authors which would have provided more clarity to the intended audience. The
key variables which were tested to determine the impact of education support intervention in
the form of self-care outcomes were clearly stated. Infact the various aspects related to the
self-care outcomes have been explained in detail. Also, the questions were consistent with
the existing knowledge as these were essentially based on a sound theoretical framework in
the form of Health Promotion Model (HPM) along with the self-efficacy theory. Thus, the
research questions and hypothesis have been framed and carried out appropriately but these
should have been clearly stated and their absence is not justified (Hair et. al., 2015).
Literature Review
The literature review was up to date which is apparent from the latest studies
including manuscripts that have been referred to. While the literature review did provide a
state of art synthesis of evidence but it would have been better if it was more exhaustive. In
the current form, the literature review seems to be rather brief. However, there is no denying
that literature review makes a strong case for the current study considering the self-care is
effective but has several challenges.
Conceptual/Theoretical Framework
The key concepts used in the study have been defined adequately. This is apparent
from the description of health status outcome which is pivotal considering these are the
aspects that have been measured and compared in order to opine on the self-care outcomes.
Also, the aspects related to the intervention planned for the study have been clearly outlined.
Also, there is a strong theoretical framework which forms the backbone of the research
design. This theoretical framework is based on the HPM (Health Promotion Model) along

with the self-efficacy theory. The HPM serves as a basis for favouring self-care over expert
care. Further, self-efficacy theory acted as behaviour change predictor which was imperative
for the given study.
Research Design
For the given study, the researchers have preferred RCT or Randomised Control Trial
which is considered to be the gold standard in relation to studying the efficiency of various
interventions. This is primarily because the test subjects are randomly allocated to the two
controls i.e. control and treatment (Flick, 2015). Hence, the most rigorous design has been
used for the study. Appropriate comparisons were indeed made in order to improve the
interpretability of the findings. This is apparent since all the participants were recruited
through referrals and had strict inclusion criteria based on age, lingual skills, heart failure
issues and degree and MMSE score. This was done so as to minimise the impact of
confounding variables. Considering the use of RCT, the various biases were limited and also
considering the time frame of the study and the nature, data collection points were
appropriate.

References
Eriksson, P. & Kovalainen, A. (2015) Quantitative methods in business research (3rd ed.).
London: Sage Publications.
Flick, U. (2015) Introducing research methodology: A beginner's guide to doing a research
project (4th ed.). New York: Sage Publications.
Hair, J. F., Wolfinbarger, M., Money, A. H., Samouel, P., & Page, M. J. (2015) Essentials of
business research methods (2nd ed.). New York: Routledge.