Evaluation of a virtual home health heart failure program: A mixed methods study (Preprint)

BACKGROUND Heart failure is a prevalent and debilitating condition, affecting millions globally and imposing significant burden on patients, families, and healthcare systems. Despite advancements in medical treatments, the gap in effective, continuous, and personalized supportive care remains glaringly evident. To address this pressing issue, virtual healthcare services, delivered by interdisciplinary teams, represent a promising solution. There is a lack of comprehensive data on the benefits of interdisciplinary virtual heart failure remote monitoring support programs on patient adherence, quality of life, and overall healthcare costs in Australia. Understanding the outcomes and experience of remote monitoring enabled chronic disease management programs can inform better resource allocation and healthcare policy decisions. OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to evaluate the clinical and behavioural outcomes of patients undertaking a Virtual Home Health Heart Failure Program (VHHHFP) and explore the experiences of patients and health care practitioners. METHODS A mixed methods study was conducted in collaboration with patients and health practitioners. Self-reported outcome data (KCCQ12, PHQ4, PAM13 and PREMS) were obtained from the records of patients (n=55) who completed the intensive phase (0- 3 months) of the VHHHFP; and interviews were conducted with patients (n= 9) and health practitioners (n= 6). RESULTS Thirty-one (77.5%) of the n=55 patients completed the baseline and three-month follow-up KCCQ12 assessment. The mean KCCQ12 Summary Score at three months was 72.20 which was significantly higher than the mean Summary Score at baseline of 50.51 (p CONCLUSIONS The use of technologies to support the management of HF is an area of growth and development. This study contributes to the understanding of how remote patient monitoring with interdisciplinary chronic disease support integrated into an existing system can improve clinical outcomes for patients.