Feasibility and Acceptance of Changes in Medical Supervision of Exercise Groups in Cardiac Rehabilitation

Summary

Exercise groups are a form of rehabilitation sport that is offered to cardiac patients (e.g. after a heart attack) in long-term rehabilitation. In Germany, the constant presence of a physician is mandatory. In order to meet the increasing demand for heart groups, the present study implements emergency care during the heart group sessions with three alternatives: paramedics, physician-on-call or specially trained instructors.

In the present study the investigators compare these alternatives (three experimental conditions) with the conventional way (control condition). Perceived safety, trust, acceptance and organisational feasibility are the main outcomes of the study. The methods used are questionnaires to the participants, instructors, organizers and, if applicable, paramedics. Additionally, partially structured interviews with attending physicians are conducted according to an interview guide.

Conditions

• Cardiac Rehabilitation
• Rehabilitation Exercise
• Organization and Administration
• Feasibility Studies

Interventions

PROCEDURE

Version 1: Paramedic

Instead of a physician, who is constantly present, a paramedic is present next to the instructor during the sessions, who can give first aid in case of an emergency and bridge the time until the ambulance arrives on site. The physician still acts as a supervisor visiting the group roughly every six weeks.

PROCEDURE

Version 2: Physician-on-call

This version implicates that a physician is not physically present but is on call during the sessions and must be constantly accessible by phone and able to arrive within three minutes in case of an emergency. To ensure this, version two should be implemented in facilities, which are linked to cardiac or rehabilitation center.

PROCEDURE

Version 3: Trained instructor

The sessions take place with the instructor only, who receives a comprehensive emergency training before and during the model phase and replaces the constantly present physician. Just like in the previous versions the physician still acts as a supervisor visiting the group roughly every six weeks.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• National Paralympic Committee Germany (NPCG)

  collaborator UNKNOWN

• Universität Münster

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Benedikt Ewald · National Paralympic Committee Germany (NPCG)

• Michael Brach, Prof. Dr. · Universität Münster

Study Design

Allocation

NON_RANDOMIZED

Purpose

HEALTH_SERVICES_RESEARCH

Masking

NONE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2018-11-05

Primary Completion

2019-12-08

Completion

2020-05-21

Countries

• Germany

Study Locations