Mastery of everyday life and social support needs in older vulnerable women with myocardial infarction and their relatives: a qualitative study

Aims The Danish public healthcare system provides a comprehensive cardiac rehabilitation (CR) programme, but attendance rates are low among older vulnerable women. Effective interventions enabling increased CR attendance are warranted. Knowledge about everyday life and social support needs is crucial to the development of effective CR interventions in this group. To explore mastery of everyday life and social support needs in older, vulnerable women with myocardial infarction (MI) and their relatives. Methods and results A qualitative explorative design using semi-structured individual or dyadic interviews with patients (n = 21) and their relatives (n = 13) and applying thematic analysis. Five themes captured mastery of everyday life and social support needs. 'The Big Picture' suggesting that comorbidities dwarfed the impact of MI. 'Blaming the Doctor' illustrated issues of distrust and treatment delay. 'Rehabilitation Barriers' explained why these vulnerable patients failed to participate in CR. 'Caregiver Concerns' described relatives dual roles as supporters and supported. 'Finding their Way' indicated how patients were assisted by peer support to negotiate the trajectory. Conclusion The study offers a basis for the development of CR interventions customized to this group of patients. Interventions should target patients with multimorbidity, low motivation for lifestyle changes, and transportation issues. Peer support is suggested for this group of patients where relatives are also apt to be vulnerable.