Date and Time
February 6, 2008
1:30 PM - 3:00 PM

Availability
Open to the public
No RSVP required

Speaker
Paul A. Heidenreich - Stanford University

Heart failure is associated with high mortality (contributes to 250,000 deaths per year in the U.S.) and morbidity (most common diagnosis at hospital discharge among the U.S. elderly). Beta-blockers are one of several treatments that have been studied in randomized controlled trials and shown to prolong survival for patients with heart failure. This presentation will describe current use for beta-blockers and other quality measures in the VA and Medicare populations. I will discuss the trials of a nurse based initiation clinic and a clinical reminder, both designed to improve the use of beta-blockers in the VA health care system. I will conclude by discussing preliminary results from an ongoing trial of implementation of the beta-blocker clinical reminder within the VA system.