Al-Makhamreh Hanna, Alkhatib Amro, Attarri Ahmed, Toubasi Ahmad A, Dabbas Aya, Al-Bkoor Basel, Sarhan Zaid, Alghafri Osama
Cardiology Division, University of Jordan, Amman, Jordan.
School of Medicine, University of Jordan, Amman, Jordan.
PeerJ. 2024 Jan 31;12:e16830. doi: 10.7717/peerj.16830. eCollection 2024.
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is an umbrella term that includes various pathologies involving the heart and the vasculature system of the body. CVD is the leading cause of death worldwide, accounting for an estimated 32% of all deaths. More than 40% of annual deaths in Jordan are due to CVD; this number is further expected to rise, particularly in the Eastern Mediterranean region where Jordan is located. Due to the chronic nature of CVD, the presence of a caregiver who can help mitigate the challenges patients face is essential, and their level of knowledge determines the quality of care they can provide. Hence, this cross-sectional study was conducted in the cardiology clinics at Jordan University Hospital (JUH). Questionnaires were distributed to 469 participants, defined in this study as the caregivers escorting patients with established coronary heart disease (CHD). The self-administered questionnaire included three sections: sociodemographic and health factors, knowledge of CVD risk factors, and CHD symptoms. The mean age of the study population was 44.38 years ± 15.92 and 54.2% of participants were males. Regarding knowledge of CVD risk factors, 84.6% of participants answered more than 70% of the questions correctly. More than 95% knew that chest pain is a symptom of an acute cardiovascular event. However, only 53.5% and 74.8% of the participants reported that jaw pain and arm pain are symptoms of an acute event, respectively. Several factors influenced the caregiver's knowledge, such as age, income, frequent health checkups, having a history of CVD, CKD, or DM, and their relationship to the patient. This study sheds light on the importance of caregiver knowledge in patient care. By improving the caregivers' knowledge, identifying their role in patient care, and raising CVD awareness in susceptible populations, healthcare professionals can improve the patients' quality of life. Overall, assessing caregivers' knowledge pertaining to CVD can provide invaluable data, which may enhance patient care by educating their caregivers.
心血管疾病（CVD）是一个统称，涵盖涉及心脏和身体血管系统的各种病症。心血管疾病是全球主要的死亡原因，估计占所有死亡人数的32%。约旦每年超过40%的死亡归因于心血管疾病；预计这一数字还会进一步上升，尤其是在约旦所在的东地中海地区。由于心血管疾病具有慢性特点，有一位能够帮助减轻患者所面临挑战的护理人员至关重要，而他们的知识水平决定了他们所能提供的护理质量。因此，这项横断面研究在约旦大学医院（JUH）的心脏病诊所进行。向469名参与者发放了问卷，在本研究中这些参与者被定义为陪同确诊冠心病（CHD）患者的护理人员。这份自行填写的问卷包括三个部分：社会人口统计学和健康因素、心血管疾病危险因素知识以及冠心病症状。研究人群的平均年龄为44.38岁±15.92岁，54.2%的参与者为男性。关于心血管疾病危险因素的知识，84.6%的参与者正确回答了超过70%的问题。超过95%的人知道胸痛是急性心血管事件的症状。然而，分别只有53.5%和74.8%的参与者报告称颌部疼痛和手臂疼痛是急性事件的症状。几个因素影响了护理人员的知识水平，如年龄、收入、频繁的健康检查、有心血管疾病、慢性肾脏病或糖尿病病史以及他们与患者的关系。这项研究揭示了护理人员知识在患者护理中的重要性。通过提高护理人员的知识水平、明确他们在患者护理中的作用以及提高易感人群对心血管疾病的认识，医疗保健专业人员可以改善患者的生活质量。总体而言，评估护理人员有关心血管疾病的知识可以提供宝贵的数据，这可能通过对其护理人员进行教育来加强患者护理。
