Design of a Remote Coaching Program to Bridge the Gap From Hospital Discharge to Cardiac Rehabilitation: Intervention Mapping Study.

Background: Remote coaching might be suited for providing information and support to patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) in the vulnerable phase between hospital discharge and the start of cardiac rehabilitation (CR).

Objective: The goal of the research was to explore and summarize information and support needs of patients with CAD and develop an early remote coaching program providing tailored information and support.

Methods: We used the intervention mapping approach to develop a remote coaching program.

Smoking cessation after nurse-coordinated referral to a comprehensive lifestyle programme in patients with coronary artery disease: a substudy of the RESPONSE-2 trial.

Objective: The objective of this study was to investigate the characteristics of successful quitters, their use of a smoking cessation programme and the use of other lifestyle interventions to improve lifestyle-related risk factors, within a nurse-coordinated care programme.

Methods: We used data from the multicentre randomised controlled RESPONSE-2 trial ( n=824, The Netherlands). The trial was designed to assess the efficacy of nurse-coordinated referral to a comprehensive set of up to three community-based interventions, based on smoking cessation, healthy food choices and physical activity to improve lifestyle-related risk factors in coronary artery disease patients, compared to usual care.

Costs of stroke and stroke services: Determinants of patient costs and a comparison of costs of regular care and care organised in stroke services.

BACKGROUND: Stroke is a major cause of death and long-term disability in Western societies and constitutes a major claim on health care budgets. Organising stroke care in a stroke service has recently been demonstrated to result in better health effects for patients. This paper discusses patient costs after stroke and compares costs between regular and stroke service care.