Best Practices for Patient Self-Management: Implications for Nurse Educators, Patient Educators, and Program Developers

Background: A major concern for nurses and program developers is to deliver the best practices for teaching self-management to people with chronic disease. This study aimed to identify the best practice strategies and interventions across heart failure (HF), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and diabetes mellitus type 2 (DM2) chronic illnesses. Method: The research design was an integrative review of research using 36 research studies. The analysis and synthesis of these studies provided information from 786 individual studies. Results: The results indicated the best strategies were programs that were individualized and prolonged in duration to improve self-management. The best interventions for teaching–learning methods were the use of a combination of direct contact options with technological devices. The common barriers to self-management were identified. Conclusion: Nurses educators and program developers of self-management programs will need to use technology creatively and develop programs that are individualized to fit the patients' chronic illness. J Contin Educ Nurs. 2018;49(9):432–440.