Decreasing 30-Day Readmission Rates in Patients With Heart Failure

Activity Summary

Required reading for all learners: Implicit Bias impacts patient outcomes

Despite advances in the treatment of heart failure, patient optimization remains a challenge for health care providers. The purpose of this project was to Reduce 30 - day hospital readmission rate for Heart Failure (HF) by implementing a comprehensive self-care program for patients and families. This Project was guided by the Transitional Care Model (Naylor 2017) and was implemented on a Telemetry unit in an acute care setting. The project design was a quality improvement project of all patients admitted to this unit with a diagnosis of HF. The implementation of an Evidence Based HF program demonstrated improvement in self- care when patients were provided adequate education and resources. The multidisciplinary team approach reduced gaps in care, provided better coordination and transition of care, thus leading to a decrease in readmission rates.

Objectives

Define the four core measures for patients with heart failure prior to discharge from a hospital.
Describe how to create the infrastructure to support an evidence-based heart failure program.
Identify the necessary counseling and appropriate discharge instructions for patients.

Continuing Education Disclosure Statement

Successful Completion

Learners must attend/view/read the entire activity and complete the associated evaluation to be awarded the contact hours or CERP. No partial credit will be awarded.

Disclosure

This activity has been reviewed by the Nurse Planner. It has been determined that the material presented here shows no bias. No conflicts of interest have been identified for any individual with the ability to influence the content of this activity. Accreditation refers to recognition of continuing education only and does not imply AACN or ANCC approval or endorsement of any commercial products discussed or displayed in conjunction with this educational activity.

Accreditation

The American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) is accredited as a provider of nursing continuing professional development by the American Nurses Credentialing Center's (ANCC's) Commission on Accreditation, ANCC Provider Number 0012. AACN has been approved as a provider of continuing education in nursing by the California State Board of Nursing (CBRN), California Provider number CEP 1036. This activity is approved for 1.00 contact hours.

AACN programming meets the standards for most states that require mandatory continuing education contact hours for license and/or certification renewal. AACN recommends consulting with your state board of nursing or credentialing organization before submitting CE to fulfill continuing education requirements.

Refund Policy

Continuing Education Activities are nonrefundable.