What is it about?

Heart failure programs have made strides in reducing 30-day readmissions, but their long-term impact on patients' lives remains unclear. Our recent study aimed to change this, examining the effectiveness of a novel nurse-led transitional heart failure program to improve patients' well-being at 90 and 180 days after hospital discharge. Our study compared two periods – before the program (Period #1) and during the program (Period #2) – to measure the true benefits of our nurse-led intervention. In total, we analyzed the experiences of 440 patients, observing a significant reduction in hospitalizations and deaths for those enrolled in the heart failure program.

Featured Image

Why is it important?

The results were compelling: patients in the heart failure program experienced considerable improvements in their long-term outcomes. These benefits were driven by a decrease in cardiovascular and heart failure hospitalizations, as well as a drop in all-cause death rates when a more comprehensive discharge planning process was included in the intervention.

Perspectives

Our study highlights the power of nurse-led transitional intervention programs in not only enhancing short-term outcomes but also fostering long-term improvements in the lives of heart failure patients. By implementing these comprehensive interventions, we can make a lasting impact on patients' well-being and reduce the healthcare costs associated with heart failure management.

Lídia Alcoberro Torres

Read the Original

This page is a summary of: Breaking the 30-day barrier: Long-term effectiveness of a nurse-led 7-step transitional intervention program in heart failure, PLoS ONE, February 2023, PLOS,
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0279815.
You can read the full text:

Read
Open access logo

Contributors

The following have contributed to this page