Program helps heart failure patients live a more normal life For most of last year, 77-year-old Marcella Southerland didn't feel her age. A retired member of AnMed Health's family practice faculty, she was walking two to three miles a day at Boulevard Baptist Church, caring for her granddaughter after school, substitute teaching for Anderson School District 5 and serving as an on-call chaplain at the Medical Center.

Southerland's life changed drastically in September when she was hospitalized for eight days. Doctors informed her that she had pneumonia and atrial fibrillation, an irregular heart rhythm that starts in the upper parts of the heart. Atrial fibrillation is fairly common in older adults and can be caused by a number of medical conditions, including pneumonia.

Southerland's doctors treated the pneumonia and installed a pacemaker to keep her heart beating regularly. The quick decline in her health was devastating for Southerland and her family. The once active senior found herself unable to open a pickle jar or stand up without help. Then, Southerland's doctor referred her to the congestive heart failure disease management program at LifeChoice.

"It was such a blessing," Southerland said. "When I first left the hospital, I could hardly walk my legs were so weak."

Three months later, she's 85 percent back to normal and still exercising.

Southerland is only one of an estimated 5 million Americans affected by congestive heart failure. For these patients, the weakened heart muscle cannot pump blood efficiently throughout the body. As a result, many suffer from symptoms such as shortness of breath, swelling in their extremities and abdomen, extreme fatigue, and limited activity endurance.

Evidence-based research shows that heart failure patients who enroll in an outpatient disease management program have improved survival rates and fewer hospitalizations than those managed in traditional health care settings.  These patients increase their exercise endurance, report improved quality of life and are more capable of being active participants in their disease management. When participants are admitted for worsening symptoms, they typically have shorter hospital stays than patients not enrolled in a disease management program.

"A large part of what we offer is education," said Sarah Long, APRN, who manages the program's daily operations at LifeChoice. "By seeing these patients frequently, we can assess their level of compliance and understanding in regards to their congestive heart failure management. Sometimes, it is as simple as getting scales for a patient so they can weigh daily and see if they've gained fluid weight." 

LifeChoice's twice-weekly program is open to anyone diagnosed with heart failure upon referral by their health care practitioner. The program has been in operation less than a year, and already it's already changing lives. A man who was being admitted to the Medical Center every two to four weeks for heart failure symptoms has been two months without a hospital visit. Another patient is better managing his disease with close follow-up, lots of encouragement and help sorting out his medications.

Michael Gibson, nurse manager at LifeChoice, said he sees phenomenal growth potential in the congestive heart failure program.

"The success we have achieved with these few patients is proof that we can truly make a difference in this population's quality of life," Gibson said.