Self-care maintenance behaviors that were reported
by the participants included using a pill system (e.g.,
use of a weekly pill container) to help them remember,
checking their ankles for swelling, weighing themselves,
and seeing a doctor. To manage their symptoms, participants
were more likely to call their doctor or nurse
for guidance. Finally, participants were moderately confident
that they could evaluate and treat their heart failure
symptoms (see Table 3). Cronbach’s alphas for the three
subscales were 0.46 for self-care maintenance, 0.45 for
self-care management, and 0.72 for self-care confidence.
Cronbach’s alpha for the total SCHFI scale was 0.51.