The Particulars: Recent investigations have suggested that creating a dedicated heart failure (HF) team and using the American Heart Association’s Get with the Guidelines-Heart Failure (GWTF-HF) program may improve compliance with standards of care.
Data Breakdown: An HF management team consisting of two outpatient HF nurse practitioners and an inpatient HF care coordinator to assist with implementing the GWTG-HF program was tested in a study. Collaboration between the parties and rounding nurses ensured follow-up appointments within 72 hours of discharge. When compared with several reference groups, the intervention demonstrated superior performance on multiple quality measures after 1 year.
Take Home Pearl: Compliance with HF standards of care appears to be enhanced when a comprehensive program that includes GWTG-HF measures is implemented.
