PRINCETON – Heart failure is one of the leading causes for hospital readmissions, at a time of increasing emphasis on keeping patients’ recoveries on track and protecting them from return visits to the hospital. To help improve this scenario for heart failure patients in New Jersey, the Institute for Quality and Patient Safety, a nonprofit affiliate of the New Jersey Hospital Association, has launched a consumer-oriented Web site, www.njha.com/heartfailure, designed to help heart failure patients better manage their condition.
The Web site offers a wealth of up-to-date information, advice, resources and links. Through this user-friendly Web site, patients can enroll in a heart failure clinic located by county so they can receive comprehensive follow-up care, search a list of pharmacies that deliver medications and find educational programs and exercise classes.
And for healthcare providers, the site provides a valuable resource they can share with heart failure patients, with the goal of improving quality of care and reducing the high cost of hospital readmissions.
“We’re very excited to offer this valuable tool for heart failure patients. The Web site will help them make lifestyle changes so they can better manage and even improve their symptoms. The information on the Web site will also be a huge help to family and caregivers,” said Aline Holmes, RN, director of the NJHA Institute for Quality and Patient Safety.
The site also includes the following features:
- An interactive slide show that discusses symptoms, diagnosis and treatment options
- A search tool to find local heart failure support groups
- Help in locating walking paths in or near the patient’s neighborhood
- A section on medications, what they do and how they can interact with other drugs.
The site was made possible with the support from the American Heart Association and funding from The Horizon Foundation for New Jersey. The Horizon Foundation’s mission is to promote the health, well being and quality of life in New Jersey communities.
