Table 2.
Twelve Strategies to Facilitate Increased Referral to, Enrollment in, and Long-Term Participation in CR Programs
| 1. Achieve strong endorsement of outpatient CR by referring physicians and hospital administration by incorporating it into the hospital discharge plan |
| 2. Automatically refer all eligible patients to outpatient CR at the time of hospital discharge |
| 3. Use hospital-based liaisons to provide CR information and education to inpatients before discharge |
| 4. Develop a brief (5–10 min) promotional video about the value of outpatient CR that can be shown to all inpatients during hospital convalescence |
| 5. Provide patients with contact information for outpatient CR programs in close proximity to their home |
| 6. Schedule CR enrollment appointments via the patient’s preferred communication mode (telephone call, text message, email, or regular mail) |
| 7. Provide the option of an HBCR program at the time of hospital discharge for low- to moderate-risk patients |
| 8. Consider system-, provider-, and patient-level financial incentives for referral to, enrollment in, and completion of early outpatient exercise-based CR sessions |
| 9. Target specific patient subsets least likely to enroll in and complete CR (eg, racial/ethnic minorities, women, older adults, rural residents, and economically disadvantaged individuals) via a network of diversity liaisons |
| 10. Develop a series of integrated practice units, staffed by allied health professionals, that can provide counseling via in-person visits or through web-based and mobile applications, telephonic coaching, handheld computer technologies, or the internet |
| 11. Establish medication dosing and adherence as a quality assurance initiative in CR |
| 12. Offer serial assessments to track ongoing efforts for cardiovascular risk reduction, including physical activity/fitness |
CR indicates cardiac rehabilitation/secondary prevention programs; and HBCR, home-based cardiac rehabilitation.