Background: The management of heart failure (HF) is challenging because of the complexities in recommended therapies. Integrated disease management (IDM) is an effective model, promoting guideline-directed care, but the impact of IDM in the community setting requires further evaluation.
Methods: A retrospective evaluation of community-based IDM. Patient characteristics were described, and outcomes using a pre- and post-intervention design were HF-related health-service use, quality of life, and concordance with guideline-directed medical therapy (GDMT).
Results: 715 patients were treated in the program (2016 to 2023), 219 in a community specialist-care clinic, and 496 in 25 primary-care clinics. The overall cohort was predominantly male (60%), with a mean age of 73.5 years (± 10.7), and 60% with HF with reduced ejection fraction. In patients with ≥ 6 months of follow-up (n = 267), pre vs post annualized rates of HF-related acute health-service use decreased from 36.3 to 8.5 hospitalizations per 100 patients per year, P < 0.0001, from 31.8 to 13.1 emergency department visits per 100 patients per year, P < 0.0001, and from 152.8 to 110.0 urgent physician visits per 100 patients per year, P = 0.0001. The level of concordance with GDMT improved; the number of patients receiving triple therapy and quadruple therapy increased by 10.1% (95% confidence interval [CI], 2.4%,17.8%) and 19.6% (95% CI, 12.0%, 27.3%), respectively. Within these groups, optimal dosing was achieved in 42.5% (95% CI, 32.0%, 53.6%) and 35.0% (95% CI, 23.1%, 48.4%), respectively. In patients with at least one follow-up visit (n = 286), > 50% experienced a clinically relevant improvement in their quality of life.
Conclusions: A community-based IDM program for HF, may reduce HF-related acute health-service use, improve quality of life and level of concordance with GDMT. These encouraging preliminary outcomes from a real-world program evaluation require confirmation in a randomized controlled trial.