Implementation of a “seamless” model of providing specialized medical care to patients with heart failure

Abstract

Heart failure (HF) is a widespread disease and tends to increase. Despite the possibilities of modern therapy, the prognosis of patients with HF remains unfavorable. Foreign experience shows that the creation of specialized heart failure clinics improves the quality of care for patients with HF, reduces the frequency of repeated hospitalizations and death of patients. The Russian Federation has gained experience in creating such clinics, in particular, in Nizhny Novgorod, Ufa, St. Petersburg and a number of other cities. The article describes the organization of the work of the Center for HF on the basis of a multidisciplinary hospital in Moscow in period 01.11.2020-01.12.2022. The database included 2,400 patients hospitalized due to acute decompensation of chronic HF (ADCHF). The leading triggers of ADCHF in the studied patient population were an episode of atrial fibrillation/flutter (37 %), low adherence to treatment (25 %) and uncontrolled hypertension (17 %), exacerbation of concomitant diseases (11 %), infection (4 %). In 6 % of patients, the leading trigger could not be identified. The hospital stage included 950 (39.5 %) patients who, in the first 24 hours from the moment of hospitalization, underwent standard physical, laboratory and instrumental examination, including lung ultrasound, NT-proBNP, liver fibroelastometry, VEXUS protocol study, bioimpedance analysis of body composition, of which 496 (20.5 %) people passed the same studies at discharge. In the structure of patients hospitalized with ADCHF who were included in the hospital follow-up stage (n=950), patients with preserved (HFpEF) 42.5 % (n=404) and reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) prevailed 36 % (n=342), patients with a mildly reduced (HFmrEF) ejection fraction were found in 21.5 %. 1,552 (64.5 %) patients refused additional studies and visits to the CH center, but agreed to outpatient follow-up in the form of telephone contacts. In 370 (15.4 %) patients, contact was lost after discharge. 240 (10 %) patients actively visit the HF center with a comprehensive assessment of congestion and correction of therapy at each visit. Conclusion. There are two stages in the treatment of patients with chronic HF. The first stage is hospital, the second one is outpatient. It is important not to make omissions in the prescribed drug therapy, which can lead to a fatal outcome. To this end, it is necessary to introduce a “seamless” model of medical care for patients with chronic HF, when the patient comes under the supervision of a multidisciplinary team that carries out timely monitoring.

Keywords

• heart failure
• clinic
• specialized care