Background: Cardiac rehabilitation (CR) reduces recurrent cardiac events and mortality in patients with cardiovascular diseases (CVD). Innovative eHealth methods can facilitate CR uptake and effectiveness by addressing barriers associated with clinic-based rehabilitation. Tailoring eHealth-based CR to patient preferences is needed to further enhance CR.
Purpose: To identify preferred behavior change techniques (BCTs) as well as barriers and facilitators for the different health behaviors targeted in eHealth-based CR among patients who have been referred to CR.
Methods: Thirty-nine patients were interviewed in nine focus groups in The Netherlands, Germany, and Spain. A thematic analysis, using a combined deductive and inductive approach to coding, was conducted to identify BCTs and barriers and facilitators to behavior change. Behaviors under investigation included physical activity, medication adherence, eating a cardiac healthy-diet, stress reduction and smoking cessation.
Results: The perceived helpfulness of BCTs depended on the specific behavior targeted. Common barriers were negative emotional state and physical limitations. A desire to feel physically or mentally well and having experienced a cardiac life event were the most common facilitators across health behaviors. Specific BCTs, barriers and facilitators were found for each of the health behavior.
Conclusions: Behavior change techniques that patients preferred for each health behavior targeted in eHealth-based CR were identified. A negative emotional state, experiencing a life event, and improving physical functioning are important barriers and facilitators in multiple behaviors targeted in eHealth-based CR programs. Additional tailoring of interventions to patient preferences for BCTs and patient-specific barriers and facilitators per health behavior could lead to further improvement of eHealth-based CR.
Keywords: Behavior change techniques; Cardiac rehabilitation; Cardiovascular disease; Health behavior change; eHealth.
© 2024 The Authors.