The development of self-care skills by heart failure patients using telemonitoring

Abstract

Telehealth is a rapidly developing aspect of technology use within healthcare, involving the application of health-related services via information technologies. Telemonitoring is a form of telehealth, chosen as the focus of this article because it is increasingly used within healthcare and in the care of heart failure (HF) patients. Telemonitoring is the use of information technology by healthcare professionals to monitor and manage patients’ health remotely. Telemonitoring use by HF patients enables them to manage their condition independently, and research indicates that it reduces the mortality rate and hospitalisation of HF patients. This article explores literature regarding HF patients’ use of telehealth. A literature review is completed using a thematic analysis approach. Study results are mixed and inconclusive regarding the impact of telemonitoring use on the development of self-care skills in HF patients. However, the findings suggest that HF patients using telemonitoring can develop their knowledge of their condition and find the telemonitoring technology user-friendly. Therefore, a software application (app) is recommended based upon the findings from the literature review, which aims to educate and encourage HF patients using telemonitoring to be able to develop more self-care skills.