Effective Strategies for Patients with Heart Failure (Henning - Online)

Course overview

Approx. 5.7 million adults in the US are diagnosed with heart failure with the NEW diagnosis of heart failure with reduced ejection fraction accounting for more than 500,000 admissions per year. Projected 5-year survival for this population is approx. 50%. The prevalence of heart failure is projected to rise by 46% by 2030. The likelihood of a rehab professional treating a patient with a diagnosis of heart failure somewhere along the rehab continuum is high and this diagnosis contributes to the high cost of healthcare in the US. The interplay of heart failure as a primary or secondary admitting diagnosis and frailty highlights the importance of individuals having a mobility specialist to examine, evaluate, and formulate a POC to address and mitigate frailty specifically related to musculoskeletal impairments, functional disability, ADL, IADL impairments, participation limitations, and disability. Unfortunately, the complex nature of these individuals' medical condition, insurance limitations, health care literacy, participation barriers, lack of knowledge of heart failure CPGs, limitations related to traditional payer and continuum of care models often results in poor referral and participation in cardiac rehab or therapy programs for those with heart failure. This course will provide a summary of the state of heart failure in the United States, prevalence of the condition, and cost to healthcare systems. The educational background qualifying rehab professionals to examine, evaluate, create plans of care, and progress or modify based on results and progress will be discussed. The benefits of exercise in heart failure will be discussed including literature supporting different exercise prescriptions. The integration of lifestyle medication into the plan of care will also be discussed. The roles of rehab providers on the interdisciplinary team will be discussed. The impact of frailty and heart failure upon each other will be highlighted. Exercise safety, education, health literacy, and medication management will all be discussed.