NURSING ACTIONS TO STRENGTHEN SELF-CARE AND PREVENT COMPLICATIONS IN PEOPLE WITH HEART FAILURE: AN INTEGRATIVE REVIEW

Abstract

This article aimed to identify nursing actions described in the literature to strengthen self-care and prevent complications in people with heart failure. The integrative review included 16 original studies on nursing participation in the actions investigated. Selection covered publications from 2021 to 2026, with full texts in Portuguese, English, or Spanish, retrieved from PubMed/MEDLINE, SciELO, and LILACS; the latter was accessed through the Virtual Health Library. The findings described health education, discharge planning, in-person and remote follow-up, symptom monitoring, family support, and interprofessional collaboration. Improvements were observed in self-care dimensions, disease knowledge, treatment adherence, and aspects of quality of life, along with fewer readmissions in some programs. However, effects varied across outcomes, and the diversity of study designs and interventions limited the attribution of results exclusively to nursing. The review concluded that the identified actions may support self-care and continuity of care, particularly through individualized education and ongoing follow-up, although findings on complication prevention varied across studies.