title: The effects of an advanced practice nurse-directed heart failure program.
abstract: A study was conducted to determine if an inpatient heart failure program directed by an advanced practice nurse (APN) affects the following patient outcomes: length of hospital stay, mortality, readmission rates, and adherence to the recommended clinical regimen. Evaluating APN-directed heart failure programs may assist hospitals and clinics to determine whether such programs should be replaced, modified, continued, or replicated. For those facilities that are considering beginning a heart failure program, the data provided in this study may help establish the necessity of developing such a program or provide ideas for program design. The APN has an integral role in program design and can assist in achieving positive patient outcomes.
authors.affiliation: John Nasseff Heart Hospital, United Hospital, St. Paul, Minn., USA.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Dahl
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Penque
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000191:economics / Q000401:mortality / Q000451:nursing*; D006801:Humans; D007902:Length of Stay; D008297:Male; D015146:Midwestern United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D009722:Nurse Practitioners; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D010348:Patient Care Team / Q000458:organization & administration*; D010359:Patient Readmission