NCT07485491

Enhancing Cardiac Rehabilitation Attendance After Secondary Myocardial Infarction Through Clinician Messaging and Motivational Calls

Activating Teams and Patients to Enhance Attendance at Cardiac Rehabilitation After Secondary Myocardial Infarction (ATTEND-CR) Trial

• Status: Not Yet Recruiting
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 60 (estimated)
• Sponsor: Massachusetts General Hospital · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 18 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Not accepted

Summary

The goal of this clinical trial is to determine if a behavioral intervention can increase attendance at cardiac rehabilitation (CR) after secondary/type 2 myocardial infarction in adult patients. The main question it aims to answer is: * Does the ATTEND-CR intervention increase attendance at ≥1 CR exercise session within 140 days of randomization? * Does the intervention increase completion of ≥12 CR exercise sessions within 140 days of randomization? Researchers will compare participants receiving the ATTEND-CR intervention (clinician notifications and a motivational interviewing participant phone call) to usual care to see if attendance and completion of CR improve. Participants: * Clinicians will receive informational messaging regarding CR and the referral process * Participate in a motivational interviewing phone call (intervention group only) * Have follow-up assessments via telephone and electronic health record (EHR) review to track CR attendance, clinical events, and health outcomes

Detailed description

The ATTEND-CR trial ("Activating Teams and Patients to Enhance Attendance at Cardiac Rehabilitation After Secondary Myocardial Infarction") is a single-center pilot randomized clinical trial designed to evaluate strategies to increase participation in cardiac rehabilitation (CR) among patients hospitalized with secondary/type 2 (demand/supply mismatch) myocardial infarction (MI). Although CR has been demonstrated to improve functional capacity, quality of life, and cardiovascular outcomes after acute MI, participation rates remain low, particularly in patients with secondary/type 2 MI. This study tests whether a low-risk, behavioral intervention can improve attendance in CR programs. Participants are randomized to either the ATTEND-CR intervention or usual care. The intervention consists of informational messaging to clinicians regarding CR and the referral process, combined with a follow-up phone call to the patient applying principles of motivational interviewing to support their attendance at CR. Usual care participants receive standard post-MI management without study-driven notifications or motivational support. Participants are followed for 140 days post-randomization. Study procedures include remote follow-up calls and review of electronic health records to capture participation in CR, clinical events, medication use, and patient-reported health status. The study team monitors safety throughout the trial, focusing on adverse events occurring during or shortly after CR sessions and any serious adverse events that arise during the follow-up period.

Conditions

• Type 2 Myocardial Infarction

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
BEHAVIORAL	Clinician-level intervention	The inpatient clinical team receives an EPIC in-basket and email detailing the patient's study participation, benefits of cardiac rehabilitation, and guidance on how to place a cardiac referral if appropriate. If a cardiac rehabilitation referral is not placed within 3 days post-discharge, a follow-up message is sent to one of the patient's outpatient clinician within 4-28 days post-discharge and within 140 days of randomization.
BEHAVIORAL	Patient-level intervention	Participants receive a phone call applying motivational interviewing principles if a cardiac rehabilitation referral has been placed by their clinical team within 56 days post-discharge and within 140 days of randomization. The phone call aims to discuss cardiac rehabilitation, barriers to participation, and support engagement in cardiac rehabilitation.

Timeline

• Start date: 2026-06-01
• Primary completion: 2028-04-01
• Completion: 2028-04-01
• First posted: 2026-03-20
• Last updated: 2026-03-20

Locations

1 site across 1 country: United States