The Third Time's a Charm: Psychometric Testing and Update of the Atlanta Heart Failure Knowledge Test.
Brittany Butts, Melinda Higgins, Sandra Dunbar and 1 others
PMID 28481824WHAT IT FOUND
The revised 30-question heart failure knowledge test was tested in 284 patients, is readable, and can flag teaching gaps, but it does not prove better self-care.
Key findings
01The revised test has 30 items and was evaluated in 284 patients with heart failure.
02Patients in the pooled sample answered 24 of 30 questions correctly on average.
03The authors revised eight questions, eliminated one, and added one to strengthen the test.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The data were pooled from four different studies, so study-to-study differences may have weakened some results. Most patients had lived with heart failure for more than six years, so it says little about newly diagnosed patients. Average scores were high and many items were easy, creating a ceiling effect and limiting discrimination. The suggested 80% cut point for insufficient knowledge is not yet validated. The study tested knowledge and measurement properties, not whether using the test improves self-care or outcomes. Dietary sodium data were not available for one study, so sodium-related validity was based on part of the sample. Some validity links were statistically significant but weak, including a .16 correlation with self-care confidence.
Declared interests
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not use the suggested 80% score as a proven cutoff for insufficient heart failure knowledge. The authors proposed it, but they also said it still needs validation.