February 11th – 15th is Heart Failure Awareness week in Canada. The event aims to raise awareness about the causes and signs and symptoms of heart failure (HF) and how people can best manage their condition. To mark the event, the regional HF Strategy will be hosting a HF awareness booth at Richmond Centre on February 14th from 930am – 9pm. Nurses, dietitians and pharmacists will be on hand to take blood pressures and provide general cardiac risk factor counseling.
There are more than 90,000 British Columbians living with HF. The disease is often characterized by periods of stability alternating with episodes of decompensation, each episode representing a potential hospitalization. As a result, our province spends approximately $600 million dollars per year caring for these patients. A number of gaps in care have been identified which may be linked to unnecessary re-admissions. A regional strategy to improve HF care has been underway since 2010. One objective of the strategy is to implement guideline driven care and improve the transition of hospitalized HF patients back into the community.
The strategy has been working with teams across all VCH and PHC sites to implement HF order sets, discharge tools, pathways, teaching records, and patient self-management resources. Extensive staff education has also been conducted and remains available as a self-directed learning module entitled Heart Failure: Management and Support which is accessible through the Course Catalogue and Registration System.
For more information about this event and the work of the HF Strategy contact Minette Walker, regional heart failure coordinator at 604-682-2344 local 66772 or minette.walker@vch.ca.