The role of health education in heart failure patients

Abstract

According to European Society of Cardiology guidelines, the goal of heart failure (HF) management is to provide an effective system of care through the whole patient’s journey including hospital and ambulatory pathway. Strategies based on patients’ education, psychosocial support and monitoring should be considered as a fundamental part of multidisciplinary disease management programs and may lead to a reduction in mortality and morbidity and improvement in the quality of life. In this article, we focus on patient’s education strategies by describing different models: “one-to-one” strategies, multidisciplinary care management programs, activation of the family members, pharmaceutical care, and end-stage HF advance care planning. Furthermore, we explain the problem of health literacy among HF patients and describe actionable advice on how medical professionals can effectively improve patients’ comprehension and knowledge on disease management and the ability for self-care. Lastly, we review the latest evidence on outcomes obtained by HF education.