Service available in:
What we do
The community heart failure team, based in South Sefton and Southport and Formby, is a specialist heart failure service geared towards the management of patients with a diagnosis of heart failure.
The aim of the service is to manage patients with a clinical diagnosis of heart failure, in order to optimise anti heart failure therapies, improve quality of life, empowers in self care, less frequent hospital cardiology follow up and provide the support and care required in understanding their condition. This overall reduces hospital admissions and reduces mortality rate.
We provide timely reviews at regular intervals to give advice, relevant information and leaflets to patients to assist with the ongoing management of their heart failure condition and optimisation of their medications.
Patients can be reviewed in community heart failure clinics and also at home if patients are housebound or have deterioration in symptoms. Once the patient is stable and has reached maximum tolerated dose of heart failure medications, they will be discharged back to the care of their GP.
The heart failure team will also provide education and supportive management to other clinicians and GPs if needed.
The service runs Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm. We do not work on bank holidays.
The health care assistants support the heart failure team, with monitoring and reviewing patients under the care of the nurses.
The team hold a weekly MDT meeting with a consultant cardiologist who together makes decisions regarding recommended treatment of individual patients.
Referrals are taken from GP, hospital consultant or cardiac nurse, or other health professionals. Health professionals should download the referral form, complete all sections of the referral proforma, and fax it back with confirmed diagnosis of heart failure based on ECHO result, to: 0151 475 4031 or email to: communitycardiacteam
Inclusion criteria:
- Left sided heart failure(HFrEF) confirmed on ECHO report
- Heart Failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) confirmed on ECHO report with elevated NT pro BNP
- Heart Failure with Valvular disorders
- Heart Failure with Cardiomyopathy.
Referral form for Sefton can be downloaded here.