Impact of a Virtual Heart Failure Unit on Readmission Rates.

Abstract

Background: At Northern Health, Victoria, a dedicated Heart Failure unit (HFU) was setup in August 2019 and a virtual HFU (VHFU) was setup in November 2021 to manage heart failure (HF) in a domiciliary setting. Method(s): A retrospective audit of patients admitted to the cardiology unit with acute decompensated HF (ADHF) from July 2018-December 2019 was compared to ADHF admissions to the HF unit from July 2022-December 2023. Result(s): From July 2018-December 2019, there were 223 admissions (62% male vs 38% female) with an average age of 74. From July 2022-December 2023, there were 309 admissions (62% male vs 38% female) with an average age of 69 years. There was a significant reduction in non-ADHF readmission rates (NAR) by 9% within 30 days and a significant increase in ADHF readmission rates by 7% within 30 days (Table). Conclusion(s): The introduction of a VHFU was associated with a reduction in non-ADHF readmissions within 30 days. Further research on domiciliary models of care may be necessary to effectively reduce ADHF readmission rates. [Formula presented]Copyright � 2024