Understanding Barriers and Facilitators to Cardiovascular Rehabilitation Participation Among Rural Residents With Cardiovascular Disease in Brazil.
Mayara Moura Alves da Cruz, Lívia Tino de Roide, Anielle Brito de Oliveira Manzatto and 5 others
PMID 41579100WHAT IT FOUND
Rural patients with heart disease or risk factors lacked knowledge about cardiac rehabilitation; 15 named it as a barrier, 20 reported no referral, and 16 struggled with phones or apps.
They also feared exercising alone.
Key findings
01Lack of awareness was the most common barrier: 15 participants named it, and 20 reported no referral.
02Remote rehabilitation was difficult for many: 16 participants reported trouble with devices or applications.
03Participants recognized exercise benefits but named barriers: lack of motivation (18), fear of unsupervised exercise (15), and work commitments (6).
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
Only 21 people took part, all from one rural public health system site, so views may not represent private or urban patients. Of 50 invited, 21 took part; 24 declined and 5 did not answer, so non-participants' views may differ. The study reports themes and counts of participant mentions, not whether any intervention improves cardiac rehabilitation participation. Participants were recruited conveniently, and the focus groups were led by a physiotherapy professor, so the sample and discussion topics may reflect the research team's setting and interests.
Declared interests
The study received no specific grant from public, commercial, or not-for-profit funding agencies, and the authors declared no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the counts of barriers as proof that an intervention will increase participation. The study asked 21 rural patients about their experiences and did not test any strategy to improve cardiac rehabilitation participation.