Association between Discharge Process and 2-year Prognosis in Patients with Heart Failure: Retrospective Chart Review

Abstract

Purpose: This study aims to explore the relationship between the discharge process and two-year prognosis in patients with Heart Failure (HF) who were hospitalized because of HF exacerbation. Methods: Medical records were reviewed to identify patients admitted for HF exacerbation. Information regarding the following discharge processes was collected: follow-up visits, discharge educational contents, and the presence of family caregivers during patient education. HF-related events, including emergency department visits, readmissions, or death because of HF, were defined as a composite of events. A multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression model was used after adjusting for covariates to explore the association between the discharge process and HF-related events. Results: A total of 201 patients were included in this study. In the two-year follow-up periods, 41 patients (20.4%) experienced at least one HF-related event. Follow-up visits were scheduled at an average of 8.11±2.92 days after discharge. Approximately 95.0% of the patients received discharge education with an average of 1.66±1.04 topics, and 69.7% of the families participated in this educational activity. In the multivariate Cox regression model, not having family members during education was associated with a longer time to HF-related events (hazard ratio: 2.09; 95% confidence interval: 1.001~4.346). However, follow-up visits and the amount of educational content received were not associated with time to HF-related events. Conclusion: The presence of family caregivers during education appears to be a protective factor against adverse prognosis in patients with HF. Our results highlight the importance of family engagement during discharge.