Table 3.
Participant responses
| Item | Question asked | Patient answer | Percentage (%) |
| 1 | What is the name of your heart condition? | Correct | 16.4% |
| Mistaken | 40.6 | ||
| Do not know/no answer provided | 43.0 | ||
| 2 | What is atrial fibrillation? | Correct | 16.4 |
| Mistaken/do not know | 82.4 | ||
| 3 | Is this a symptom of atrial fibrillation? | ||
| Irregular heart beat | Correct | 68.5 | |
| Mistaken/do not know | 31.5 | ||
| Breathlessness | Correct | 60.3 | |
| Mistaken/do not know | 39.5 | ||
| Chest discomfort | Correct | 52.1 | |
| Mistaken/do not know | 47.9 | ||
| Light-headedness | Correct | 42.4 | |
| Mistaken/do not know | 57.6 | ||
| Decreased exercise ability | Correct | 63.6 | |
| Mistaken/do not know | 36.4 | ||
| 4 | What are we trying to prevent when we treat atrial fibrillation? | ||
| Symptomatic relief | Correct | 63.0 | |
| Mistaken/do not know | 37.0 | ||
| Stroke | Correct | 12.7 | |
| Mistaken/do not know | 87.3 | ||
| Heart failure | Correct | 57.6 | |
| Mistaken/do not know | 42.4 | ||
| Heart attack | Correct | 43.6 | |
| Mistaken/do not know | 56.4 | ||
| 5 | Are you taking any blood thinning medication? | Correct | 92.7 |
| Mistaken/do not know | 7.3 | ||
| 6 | What is the name of your blood thinning medication? | Correct | 54.5 |
| Mistaken/do not know | 45.5 | ||
| 7 | Why are you on a blood thinning medication? | Correct | 68.5 |
| Mistaken/do not know | 31.5 | ||
| 8 | Is this a complication of blood thinning medication? | ||
| Bruising | Correct | 68.5 | |
| Mistaken/do not know | 31.5 | ||
| Bleeding | Correct | 74.5 | |
| Mistaken/do not know | 25.5 | ||
| 9 | Do you know how your blood is being monitored? | Correct | 66.1 |
| Mistaken/do not know | 33.9 | ||
| 10 | Other than blood thinning medications, what other treatments are there for atrial fibrillation? | Rate/rhythm control medications | 11.5 |
| Radiofrequency ablation | 7.3 | ||
| Cardioversion | 1.2 | ||
| Others: lifestyle modifications, control of other chronic diseases | 11.5 | ||