Women's Preferences for Cardiac Rehabilitation: Do Home-Based and Women Only Programs Better Meet Their Needs?

Background: Although cardiac rehabilitation (CR) is effective, women report programs do not meet their needs. The objectives of the study were to describe women’s: (1) adherence to CR allocation, (2) satisfaction by model attended, and (3) CR preferences.

Design & Methods: Female patients were randomized to mixed-sex, women-only, or home-based CR. Patients were recruited from six hospitals. Consenting participants were asked to complete a survey. Eligible patients were randomized. Participants were mailed a follow-up survey.

Results: Overall 169 (18.6%) patients were randomized, of which 116 (68.6%) were retained. Forty-five (26.6%) participants did not receive the allocated model. Satisfaction was high (mean=4.23±1.16/5; p=0.85), but women-only participants felt more comfortable in their workout attire (p=0.003), and perceived the environment as less competitive (p=0.02). Patients preferred mixed-sex (n=44, 41.9%) and women-only (n=44, 41.9%) CR, over home-based (n=17, 16.2%).

Conclusion: Females were highly satisfied regardless of CR model attended, but preferred supervised programs most.