Demographic characteristics (41 references over 63% of participants)
Individual qualities representing membership to segments of the population (e.g., age, race, sex).
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Biomedical characteristics (440 references over 100% of participants)
States and events related to health, disease, and medical condition.
“She’s tired… but it’s been kind of just gradually (progressing).”husband of 74/F/Wh “Doctor also uh explained to me that what was wrong with me physically uh was actually fairly minor things and not unexpected at my age. Um it’s just your cumulative effect of all of them coming together.”81/M/Wh
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Mood and mental health (70 references over 68% of participants)
Problems of psychological or emotional well-being, including depression, anxiety, and negative emotion.
“I used to play with my little dog, but he died on me. So now I just go to sleep and take me a nap and, and then I watch television.”80/M/Mix “I get a little down sometimes and I have to get back, pull my, I have to pull myself back out of that because I know I’m only hurting myself.”67/F/Wh
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Limitations (87 references over 100% of participants)
Stable constraints on functional, physical, and cognitive-perceptual ability.
“The doctors want me to walk around. I just can’t do it. And occasionally lately if I am sitting in the chair and I want to get up and do something I, I just don’t, just can’t get out of the chair.”85/F/Wh
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Knowledge (240 references over 100% of participants)
Gaps in awareness or familiarity with the precepts of heart failure disease and related self-care.
“I know my feet would swell quite a bit and I just thought it was hot weather. You know, when hot weather comes feet swell.”80/F/Bl [did not recognize symptom of heart failure] “I don’t ever reach for the salt shaker, you know, so I don’t know where I’m getting all this salt at.”74/F/Wh [did not understand sources of dietary sodium besides table salt] “Do you ever get off the medications for that or will I be taking this the rest of my life to keep me alive?”74/M/Bl [did not understand chronic, incurable, and progressive nature of disease]
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Motivation (20 references over 47% of participants)
Lack of initial or sustained drive to accomplish general or specific goals.
“So I can go anytime … I mean, I don’t wanna fight it no longer, you know I’m just, I know a lot, a lot of people have put up with this problem for longer you know…but I told [my cardiologist] if I’m in a bad shape and you see that I’m getting my last breath, I said let me go on.”74/F/Wh “When I go to sleep at night, I think about tomorrow I’m going to walk around the block [for exercise]. But tomorrow comes and goes and I’m still saying the same thing. I just haven’t gotten the motivation to do it.”85/F/Wh
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Personal preferences and habits (142 references over 87% of participants)
Relatively stable and familiar personal preferences and tendencies developed and routinized over time.
“I do not per se get up and put on the sneakers and go out for a walk. I have to have a destination and want a reason.”66/M/Wh “I’m not supposed to have no pork, but I’ve been eating pork all my life. And sometimes it’s hard to just break habits, you know, like stuff like that.”74/M/B “I do love Spam, Lord mercy, I could eat a whole can of Spam.”74/F/Wh
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Perceptions and attitudes (131 references over 93% of participants)
Specific beliefs and general evaluations of health, disease, self-care, treatment, others, and oneself.
“I don’t like to talk about it [heart failure]. I don’t like hearing about it all day.”65/M/Bl “So, what I have to do, I have to, um, weigh myself every day, right? I have to write it down, but I don’t write it down. I know how much I weigh.”79/M/Mix “What’s the sense of living if I can’t at least enjoy?”66/M/Wh
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Informal caregiver characteristics (41 references over 63% of participants)
Characteristics (e.g., availability, limitations, knowledge) or behaviors of informal caregivers.
“I’m not with her every day and that’s probably one of the things we’re trying hard to get now a sitter because I work and most of us [in the family] do;”1st daughter of 82/F/Bl “…everybody’s working together on this and, um, there don’t seem to be a problem. So, we’re, we’re getting there somehow, but, uh, it’s tiring, you know, we’re all doing our part, and my husband is working with me, he’s taking care of our home…It’s hard, you know, uh, I never knew it would be this hard, but it’s hard. It’s hard.”2nd daughter of 82/F/Bl
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Healthcare professional characteristics (48 references over 73% of participants)
Characteristics (e.g., availability, ability) or behaviors of informal caregivers.
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