Regular readers of my blog, knows that improved outcomes via patient adherence is an ongoing interest of mine. Earlier this month, the New York Times had a blogpost about a program at UCSF where nurse educators worked with heart failure patients to reduce readmissions.
How the program worked was very simple. A coordinator spends at least one hour explaining the patient’s condition to the patient and his or her family, and preparing them to manage the patient’s condition outside the hospital setting. The coordinator asks questions about the patient’s diet and gives healthy alternatives. They teach caregivers how look for troubling symptoms, and about the medications the patient is on. Patients and caregivers develop an ongoing relationship with the program with emails, phone calls and home visits. There is even coaching on how to interact with other health care providers.
While the program is not cheap, it has a great ROI. It began with a $575,000 grant and UCSF continues to fund it. However, since the program began three years ago, the hospital’s heart failure readmission rate has dropped by 30 percent and the hospital estimates the program has saved Medicare at least $1 million a year.
It’s another example of educated patients (and caregivers) improving the quality of their lives, and reducing the burden on our healthcare system. It’s a no brainer, and yet these programs are few and far between. We need to figure out ways to fund and support more of these programs. It’s in everyone’s best interest.
Patching the Boat 