Affiliation:
1. University of Minho, Portugal
2. Évora University, Portugal
Abstract
Cardiovascular diseases are chronic diseases with the highest morbidity and mortality rate worldwide. The high number of hospital admissions for coronary artery disease and the low adherence to cardiac rehabilitation programs constitute an opportunity for nurses to develop educational interventions aimed at health promotion, health literacy, empowerment, and accountability of the patient's abilities for an effective self-care. Nurses need to understand chronic patient's priorities and implement patient-centered care considering that caring for patients with chronic disease requires interventions focused on individual human responses. Therefore, the intention of this chapter is to provide an overview of the impact of educational nursing interventions on health literacy and patient empowerment as a method to improve self-care skills that are necessary for dealing with chronic disease.