Heart Failure Patients Given Discharge Instructions

What Does This Measure?

The percentage of eligible heart failure patients who received discharge instructions addressing activity level, diet, medications, follow-up appointment, weight monitoring, and what to do if symptoms worsen.

Why Is This Important?

Heart failure is a chronic condition. It results in symptoms such as shortness of breath, dizziness, and fatigue. When patients understand and follow instructions for managing these symptoms, they have a lower risk of being hospitalized again for heart failure.

What Are We Doing to Improve Our Performance?

Duke has enacted several initiatives to improve our performance. These include:

• Evidence-based medicine
• Computerized physician order entry (CPOE)
• Standardized order sets
• Patient rounding
• Electronic medical records (EMR)
• Nursing and physician education
• Heart failure-specific discharge instructions and patient education information
• Patient safety and clinical quality committees
• Patient advocacy and support groups

More Information

• See more heart failure quality measures
• See all performance measures
• Compare Duke to other North Carolina hospitals at NC Hospital Quality Report
• Compare Duke to regional and national hospitals at Hospital Quality Alliance's Hospital Compare