knowledge, experience, perceptions and beliefs of women with cardiovascular disease in northwestern ontario
abstract
cardiovascular disease (cvd) is the primary killer of men and women. mortality rates in
northwestern ontario (nwo) continue to be higher than the provincial average. current
trends suggest that cardiac-related deaths for women in canada will increase by 28%
between 1995 and 2016, whereas deaths for men will slightly decline. the effects of
cvd in women within a gender context have been understudied. there is a need to
understand women’s lived experience with cvd to help determine more effective health promoting
strategies for women. a qualitative and quantitative descriptive and
exploratory study was designed to examine women’s lived experiences with cvd. a
structured gender health questionnaire was developed as part of the study. taped-interviews
were conducted with 30 women (15 rural, 15 urban) with established heart
disease living in nwo. quantitative and qualitative data were analyzed from transcripts.
through the process of sharing their experiences, the women articulated how the disease
impacted their life, what lifestyle adaptations they have made, and what psychological
and psychosocial interventions have been or would be beneficial to them. heart disease
appears to have a lasting negative influence on how a woman rates her health in relation
to others in her age group.
collections
- retrospective theses [1604]