[Evaluation of a home-based intervention in heart failure patients. Results of a randomized study].

Introduction And Objectives: Home-based interventions after hospital discharge in patients with heart failure (HF) have been shown to decrease readmission and mortality rates. The primary aim of this study was to determine the effect of a home-based educational intervention carried out by nursing staff on the readmission rate, emergency department visits, and healthcare costs.

Patients And Method: Patients hospitalized with systolic HF were randomly assigned to receive either usual care or a single home-based educational intervention 1 week after discharge.

The impact of a patient education programme in the control of hypertension.

The value of patient education programmes in the control of hypertension is controversial. We have conducted a prospective study to investigate a patient education programme in our clinic. Every new patient was randomised into one of two different groups: a control group (CG, n = 149) and an intervention group (IG, n = 138); the latter group was invited to attend two educational talks and subsequently one tutorial meeting.