Health behaviours of rural Australians following percutaneous coronary intervention: a systematic scoping review

Introduction: Following a percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), emphasis is placed on healthy lifestyle modification by means of secondary prevention. The literature suggests Australians have difficulty within the period following a PCI, particularly the rural cohort. Despite having a higher incidence of cardiac disease, there is minimal evidence on secondary prevention within the rural Australian population. Therefore, there is a clear need for a comprehensive review to gather literature of the health behaviours of this population post-PCI. Methods: A scoping review was undertaken to obtain literature within 2007–2017. The following databases were searched in January 2018: Cochrane Library, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, PubMed Central, Embase, ProQuest and PsycINFO. Search strings were derived from three topics: ‘behaviours’, ‘rural’ and ‘PCI’. Results: Ten publications met the inclusion criteria. Over half the studies were of a quantitative design, along with one qualitative study. Overall, there was minimal published literature on the rural Australian population. Three key themes were identified from the literature: referral and attendance to cardiac rehabilitation, isolation and transitioning difficulties. Conclusions: The systematic scoping review highlights the need for future research to determine strategies to improve healthy behaviours of rural Australians post-PCI.