Preventive Cardiovascular Nursing: Resilience Across The Lifespan For Optimal Cardiovascular Wellness

This book provides a comprehensive overview of essential concepts and evidence that guide the practice of contemporary preventive cardiovascular nursing. The sections incorporate a lifespan approach to cardiovascular wellness, and provide perspectives on sources of known and emerging cardiovascular risk factors as well as the spectrum of multidimensional factors including biological, behavioral, psychological and sociocultural influences on cardiovascular wellness, risk, and the evolution of cardiovascular conditions.

Unique features address: 1) building resilience across the lifespan such that optimal cardiovascular wellness can be attained within multiple contexts of health states to increase a healthy lifespan and longevity; 2) behavior change skills for risk factor reduction; 3) risk factors and risk reduction approaches with special populations defined by gender, , age and aging, heath states, and health equity issues; and 4) high level roles for cardiovascular nurses as provider - risk assessor, communicator and care provider; educator, leader, patient and health advocate. Relevant case studies are included throughout to facilitate the application of the content.

This book fills a gap in that there is no other book on preventive cardiovascular nursing care and roles , and it provides support for the nurse to lead relevant interdisciplinary teams. The book will empower nurses to build knowledge and skills for cardiovascular prevention and to provide leadership for optimal cardiovascular wellness for patients and communities. 

Sandra B. Dunbar, RN, PhD is the Charles Howard Candler Professor Emerita of Cardiovascular Nursing and former Senior Associate Dean of Academic Advancement. in the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing. and adjunct professor in the School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA.  She has focused her program of research on improving outcomes for complex cardiovascular patients and their families and with interdisciplinary colleagues, she has led NIH, AHA and other funded clinical trials that developed and tested interventions to improve self-care and quality of life, reduce cardiovascular risk and psychosocial distress in both CV patients and their family caregivers, and create cost-effective approaches that reduce health resource use. She has successfully mentored doctoral students, postdoctoral trainees, and junior faculty, and has served as the Director of a T32 on Improving outcomes in Chronic Conditions, and served as the Training Director for the AHA funded SFRN Emory-Morehouse Center for Cardiovascular Health Disparities (MECA). Her leadership spans multiple professional nursing and interdisciplinary organizations in that she has served as Chair of the Council of Cardiovascular and Stroke Nursing of the American Heart Association (AHA), chair of the Nursing Council of the Heart Failure Society of America, President of the American Association of Critical Care Nurses, and President of the Preventive Cardiovascular Nursing Association.  She is an elected fellow in the AHA, the American Academy of Nursing, and PCNA.  She has published widely in nursing and interdisciplinary journals and has presented her work including topics of prevention at local, national, and international scientific meetings. 

Lynne T. Braun, PhD is Professor Emerita in the Department of Adult Health and Gerontological Nursing, Rush University College of Nursing. For over 22 years, she practiced as a nurse practitioner in the Rush Heart Center for Women where she focused on prevention. Currently, she serves as consultant to the Rush Heart Center for Women. Braun’s clinical and research interests include cardiovascular risk reduction, exercise, cardiac rehabilitation, hyperlipidemia and hypertension management. She is a Diplomate of the Accreditation Council of Clinical Lipidology. She served as co-investigator for three research grants funded by the National Institutes of Health, most recently, a study entitled, “Reducing Health Disparity in African American Women: Adherence to Physical Activity.” She is a co-author of five AHA/ACC Scientific Statements, the AHA/ACC statement on Performance Measures for the Primary Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease, and three AHA clinical practice guidelines, including the 2018 ACC/AHA Guideline on the Management of Blood Cholesterol. She chaired the AHA policy statement on Palliative Care in Cardiovascular Disease and Stroke. Braun is an editorial board member for the Journal of Clinical Lipidologyand a reviewer for numerous other journals.  Braun has been an active volunteer for the American Heart Association since 1980 in numerous capacities. She is Past President of the Midwest Region Board of Directors and Past Chairperson of the Illinois Advocacy Committee. Nationally, Braun is the Past Chairperson of the Council on Cardiovascular and Stroke Nursing. She is Past President of the Preventive Cardiovascular Nurses Association. She is an elected Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing, the American Heart Association, the National Lipid Association, the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, and the Preventive Cardiovascular Nurses Association.  She is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Gold Heart Award from the American Heart Association and the Marie Hippensteel Lingeman Award for Excellence in Nursing Practice from Sigma Theta Tau International.