Abstract

• The purpose of the study was to identify the effects of inpatient cardiac rehabilitation programs on motivation, the performance of health behavior, and quality of life in patients with coronary artery disease. The subjects consisted of 31 patients who participated in the rehabilitation program during their hospital stay, and were compared with 34 patients who did not participate. The study results are as follows: 1. The mean of cardiac risk factor scores for the subjects was 22.5 (SD = 5.5) at the level of low to moderate risk with some possibility to improve. The physiological and behavioral risk factors for the subjects were also in the normal range or slightly above the normal range. 2. The motivation level to preform health behaviors for both groups was improved after discharge. Also, perceived self-efficacy was significantly higher for the program participants than for the comparison group at the post-test. 3. The performance of cardiac related health behaviors improved for both groups after discharge, but there were no significant differences between the two groups. The program participants reported better performance in most health behaviors at the post-test, but the results failed to reach a statistical significant level. 4. As for motivation and health behavior, the subjects in the both groups showed an improved quality of life after the discharge. In addition, the program participants produced significantly higher scores in health and functioning dimension than the comparison group during the post-test. In conclusion, the study partially supported the effects of the inpatient cardiac rehabilitation program to motivate and improve the quality of life, and provide the need to apply early rehabilitation interventions for the patients after cardiac events. Further study with a longitudinal design is also suggested to verify the effect of cardiac rehabilitation program from hospitalization to discharge and subsequently to fully recover to the level of pre-hospitalized state.
• Keywords: Motivation; Health behavior; Quality of Life; Inpatient cardiac rehabilitation program

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