Health literacy to support cardiac recovery

“Vou ser operado ao coração, e agora? Guia para uma rápida recuperação” is a patient-centered book coordinated by Value for Health CoLAB, authored by Prof. José Fragata, a leading Portuguese cardiothoracic surgeon.

The book offers practical and accessible guidance for patients preparing for or recovering from heart surgery. It supports patients in understanding what to expect, how to care for themselves, and how to regain autonomy post-surgery – contributing to better health outcomes and quality of life.

This initiative is part of VOH.CoLAB’s mission to improve Health Literacy in Portugal and is closely linked to the CardioFollow.AI project, which focuses on tele-monitoring patients after discharge from cardiothoracic surgery.

Project goals

  1. Provide clear, accessible health information for patients undergoing heart surgery.
  2. Promote patient empowerment and self-care before and after hospital discharge.
  3. Support lifelong health education across all ages, backgrounds, and literacy levels.
  4. Contribute to inclusive, quality communication in healthcare through co-designed materials.

Our role

We coordinated the publication process and aligned the project with VOH.CoLAB’s core mission to promote health literacy. Our contributions included:

  • Project coordination and alignment with CardioFollow.AI’s telemonitoring objectives.
  • Integration of health literacy principles in structure, language, and illustrations.
  • Collaboration with medical professionals, patients, caregivers, and communicators.

Lead researcher at VOH

Ana Rita Londral, PhD

Executive Director

Project outcomes and impact

  • Published a first-of-its-kind patient guide for heart surgery in Portugal.
  • Presented at the event “Promoting self-care to improve health outcomes” (June 23, 2022, NOVA University of Lisbon), with testimonials from author Prof. José Fragata and former patient Luís Represas.
  • Created a model for future patient education materials, expanding into a full book collection, awarded by National Health Literacy Award 2023.
  • Contributed to VOH.CoLAB’s broader impact in citizen empowerment, self-care promotion, and open-access health education.