Feasibility of a Brief, In-patient Coping and Sleep Intervention to Reduce Potentially Preventable Readmission of Cardiac Patients to Hospital

Background: Psychological distress is prevalent amongst hospital in-patient and may predispose patients to potentially preventable readmissions after discharge. A particularly vulnerable group are patients with cardiac disorders. This study tested the feasibility of a brief cognitive behavioural therapy consisting of an in-hospital coping session and a post-discharge healthy sleep session.

Methods: Standardised questionnaire were used to assess sleep, coping/distress and wellbeing at baseline (pre-intervention) and one-month post-discharge (post-intervention). Treatment fidelity and acceptability were assessed at follow-up. Participants included 72 inpatients admitted with a cardiac disorder or reported to have a cardiac problem whilst in hospital from a single Australian public hospital.

Results: Most (83 %) participants found the intervention helpful/very helpful. At baseline prior to admission, almost half of participants (46 %) reported poor wellbeing, 19 % high levels of distress and poor coping, and 47 % sleeping less than 7 h per night. Following the intervention, 45 % of participants with poor wellbeing at baseline had reliable change in wellbeing at follow-up. Conversely, only 22 % of patients with high levels of coping/distress at baseline demonstrated improved coping/distress at follow-up suggesting smaller gains. On average a large 43 min gain in sleep duration was observed post-treatment in patients with poor sleep at baseline. Fourteen percent of participants were readmitted to hospital within 34-days of discharge.

Conclusions: The coping and sleep intervention was well received with positive outcomes in patients especially those reporting high levels of distress for sleep and to lesser extent coping and wellbeing. Future studies to assess the efficacy of the brief intervention at reducing hospital readmissions are needed.