Patient, Caregiver, and Clinician Perceptions of Ventricular Assist Device Self-care Education Inform the Development of a Simulation-based Mastery Learning Curriculum.
Jeffrey H Barsuk, Elaine R Cohen, Rebecca S Harap and 5 others
PMID 31738216WHAT IT FOUND
Patients, caregivers, and clinicians said self-care training must teach dressing and controller changes, alarms, and medications, with repetition, assessment, and refreshers.
They also wanted simulator practice.
Key findings
01Participants said VAD self-care training must include dressing changes, controller changes, alarm response, and medication management.
02Training should be standardized and followed by assessment before discharge.
03Clinicians said patients and caregivers often knew how to do tasks but not why or when.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The views came from a single academic medical center, so they may not match practices at smaller or non-academic VAD programs. The paper does not show that the curriculum improves skills, infection rates, or quality of life. It reports interview themes and curriculum development. Patients and caregivers had to be English-speaking adults able to consent, so it does not address people who need language, cognitive, or literacy supports. Some physician participants acknowledged they did not fully know existing training processes because they did not deliver the training. Pre-implant training was requested but often not realistic because VAD implantation can be emergent.
Declared interests
No conflict-of-interest declaration is included in the supplied text. The publication types list NIH extramural research support.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read this as evidence that the curriculum improves VAD self-care or reduces infections. It reports interview themes and curriculum development, not tested patient outcomes.