According to a Feb. 13 press release, more than two dozen healthcare systems in the U.S. have joined the American Heart Association’s IMPLEMENT-HF initiative since it launched in 2020. IMPLEMENT-HF aims to create a healthcare ecosystem for heart failure patients that puts emphasis on implementing science and patient engagement, as well as bridging communication and care coordination between care settings, healthcare professionals, and patients to improve outcomes.
The press release states that “Approximately 6 million Americans live with heart failure (HF)—a number expected to reach epidemic proportions as the population ages. According to the American Heart Association, the world’s leading voluntary health organization devoted to a world of longer, healthier lives for all, the condition ranks among the costliest to treat and takes a tremendous toll on patients’ quality of life and longevity.”
The initiative, according to the release, will use established American Heart Association primary data collection approaches to identify, implement, and evaluate methods to develop new standards for heart failure patient management.
The release adds that “Health systems in seven geographic regions were invited to participate in IMPLEMENT-HF. Sites within these systems joined the call, demonstrating their commitment to quality heart failure care:
- Chicago area
- Advocate Aurora Health Care
- Insight Chicago
- NorthShore University HealthSystem
- Rush University System for Health
- Silver Cross Hospital
- University of Illinois Hospital & Health Sciences System
- East Central Rural North Carolina area
- CarolinaEast Health System
- Carteret Health Care
- UNC Health Care
- Onslow Memorial Hospital
- Kansas City area
- AdventHealth
- HCA Healthcare
- St. Luke's Health System
- University Health
- Milwaukee area
- Ascension
- Advocate Aurora Health Care
- Cedar Lake Health & Rehabilitation Center
- East Castle Place
- Froedtert Health
- ProHealth
- West Allis Fire Department
- New Jersey area
- Hackensack Meridian Health
- Inspira Health
- Penn Medicine
- University Hospital
- Virtua Health System
- Philadelphia area
- Penn Medicine
- Jefferson Health
- St. Louis area
- BJC HealthCare
- SSM Health”
Cedar Lake Health & Rehabilitation Center, East Castle Place, and West Allis Fire Department are not collecting program data.
The funding for IMPLEMENT-HF comes from founding sponsor, Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, and national sponsors, Boehringer Ingelheim and Eli Lilly and Company.
