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Heart failure clinics – or heart function clinics as they’re known in some places – provide patients and families with the tools and knowledge they need in order to live well with heart failure, including:
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Complete medical evaluation
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Ongoing education and connections to community resources
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Assistance with managing medication and medical care
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Advice about diet, lifestyle, self monitoring and self management
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Ongoing support through follow-up visits and telephone monitoring
Prior to the work of the Initiative, heart failure clinics were offered in four centers - Edmonton, Calgary, Red Deer and Lethbridge. Many patients had to travel hundreds of kilometers to receive the comprehensive services offered in those centres. As well the demand for services is rapidly increasing as the population ages.
In order to improve access and meet demand, the Heart Failure Initiative is adding new capacity and expanding the reach of existing resources for people living with heart failure. Ties with primary care networks and family physicians are being strengthened in order to support a patient’s connection with their regular source of care.
Participating areas across Alberta are setting up or expanding heart failure services either by:
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Starting an entirely new clinic
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Increasing capacity at an existing clinic
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Participating in regional training sessions to increase clinician awareness and physician adoption rates
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Some combination of the above (e.g. deploy a new clinic at one regional site and increase educational components for another site)
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