Perceptions of Women with Cardiovascular Disease Who Chose Conservative Therapy Over Advanced Therapy

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death for women. Women with cardiovascular diseases are less likely to receive the available advanced therapies such as defibrillators, pacemakers, and left ventricular assist devices as part of their cardiovascular care plan when compared to their male counterparts. Kelly’s theory of personal constructs and his11 corollaries were used as the theoretical foundation for this basic qualitative study to help explore and understand the perceptions of women who chose a conservative therapy instead of a more advanced therapy for their cardiovascular disease. Social media platforms and snowballing technique were used to recruit the six study participants who were interviewed using semi structured interviews. Thematic analysis was used to identify three emerging themes for the study. The three themes were perceptions of conservative therapy, perceptions of advanced therapy and experiences that affect perceptions of therapy. The findings of the study demonstrated how perceptions of both conservative and advanced therapy as well as how experiences affected the perceptions of women concerning their therapy choice. The results have implications for promoting positive social change as providers recognize the implications of women’s experiences and perceptions on their decisions for treatment. Future studies to examine interventions early in the course of heart disease is recommended to promote awareness of treatment options for women with heart disease. Additionally, studies to examine the differences in treatment choices by age, and race/ethnicity may provide still further insights to improve health outcomes for women with heart disease.