Chris P Gale1,2,3, Andrew J S Coats4, Suleman Aktaa1,2,3, Marija Polovina5, Giuseppe Rosano6, Amr Abdin7, Manuel Anguita8, Mitja Lainscak9,10, Lars H Lund11, Theresa McDonagh12,13, Marco Metra14, Richard Mindham15, Massimo Piepoli16, Stefan Störk17, Mariya P Tokmakova18, Petar Seferović5. 1. Leeds Institute of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Medicine, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK. 2. Leeds Institute for Data Analytics and Leeds Institute of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Medicine, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK. 3. Department of Cardiology, Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, Leeds, UK. 4. Faculty of Medicine, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK. 5. Faculty of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia. 6. Department of Medical Sciences, IRCCS San Raffaele Pisana, Rome, Italy. 7. Internal Medicine Clinic III, Cardiology, Angiology and Intensive Care Medicine, Saarland University Hospital, Homburg/Saar, Germany. 8. Department of Cardiology, Hospital Universitario Reina Sofía, Maimonides Institute for Biomedical Research (IMIBIC) and University of Cordoba, Cordoba, Spain. 9. Division of Cardiology, General Hospital Murska Sobota, Murska Sobota, Slovenia. 10. Faculty of Medicine, University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia. 11. Department of Medicine, Karolinska Institute, and Department of Cardiology, Karolinska, University Hospital, Solna, Sweden. 12. King's College Hospital, London, UK. 13. School of Cardiovascular Medicine & Sciences, King's College London, London, UK. 14. Institute of Cardiology, Department of Medical and Surgical Specialties, Radiological Sciences, and Public Health, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy. 15. Patient Representative, London, UK. 16. Heart Failure Unit, Cardiology, G. da Saliceto Hospital, Piacenza, Italy. 17. Comprehensive Heart Failure Centre, University and University Hospital Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany. 18. Section of Cardiology, First Department of Internal Diseases, Medical University of Plovdiv, and Clinic of Cardiology, UMHAT 'Sv. Georgi' EAD, Plovdiv, Bulgaria.
Abstract
AIMS: To develop a suite of quality indicators (QIs) for the evaluation of the quality of care for adults with heart failure (HF). METHODS AND RESULTS: We followed the ESC methodology for QI development, which involved (i) the identification of the key domains of care for the management of HF by constructing a conceptual framework of HF care, (ii) the development of candidate QIs by conducting a systematic review of the literature, (iii) the selection of the final set of QIs using a modified Delphi method, and (iv) the evaluation of the feasibility of the developed QIs. The Working Group comprised experts in HF management including Task Force members of the 2021 European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Clinical Practice Guidelines for HF, members of the Heart Failure Association (HFA), Quality Indicator Committee and a patient representative. In total, 12 main and 4 secondary QIs were selected across five domains of care for the management of HF: (1) structural framework, (2) patient assessment, (3) initial treatment, (4) therapy optimization, and (5) assessment of patient health-related quality of life. CONCLUSION: We present the ESC HFA QIs for HF, describe their development process and provide the scientific rationale for their selection. The indicators may be used to quantify and improve adherence to guideline-recommended clinical practice and thus improve patient outcomes.
AIMS: To develop a suite of quality indicators (QIs) for the evaluation of the quality of care for adults with heart failure (HF). METHODS AND RESULTS: We followed the ESC methodology for QI development, which involved (i) the identification of the key domains of care for the management of HF by constructing a conceptual framework of HF care, (ii) the development of candidate QIs by conducting a systematic review of the literature, (iii) the selection of the final set of QIs using a modified Delphi method, and (iv) the evaluation of the feasibility of the developed QIs. The Working Group comprised experts in HF management including Task Force members of the 2021 European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Clinical Practice Guidelines for HF, members of the Heart Failure Association (HFA), Quality Indicator Committee and a patient representative. In total, 12 main and 4 secondary QIs were selected across five domains of care for the management of HF: (1) structural framework, (2) patient assessment, (3) initial treatment, (4) therapy optimization, and (5) assessment of patient health-related quality of life. CONCLUSION: We present the ESC HFA QIs for HF, describe their development process and provide the scientific rationale for their selection. The indicators may be used to quantify and improve adherence to guideline-recommended clinical practice and thus improve patient outcomes.
Authors: Suleman Aktaa; Gorav Batra; John G F Cleland; Andrew Coats; Lars H Lund; Theresa McDonagh; Giuseppe Rosano; Petar Seferovic; Peter Vasko; Lars Wallentin; Aldo P Maggioni; Barbara Casadei; Chris P Gale Journal: Eur Heart J Date: 2022-06-14 Impact factor: 35.855