Primary Care Heart Failure Education Program to Improve Quality of Life

Abstract

Heart failure is a public health concern within today’s healthcare system at both the national and local level. As the prevalence of heart failure continues to rise, interventions on improving patient outcomes, reducing mortality, and decreasing the frequent inpatient visits associated with the condition is a necessity. To improve patient outcomes for the heart failure population, a heart failure education program with three participants was conducted on adult heart failure patients at a primary care clinic. The purpose of this evidence-based quality improvement project was to determine if evidence-based education, motivational interviewing, and telephone follow-up interventions improve symptoms, quality of life, and decrease 30-day hospital readmission rates in adult heart failure patients within a primary care setting. Patient symptoms and quality of life were measured with the Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire. The results of the heart failure education program concluded that patient symptoms improved by 1.21% and quality of life improved by 19.31%. Heart failure is a major public health concern that is both burdensome to patients and costly to the healthcare system. The evidence indicates that educational interventions are warranted to help improve outcomes and the quality of life for those suffering from heart failure.