On Demand: Building a Stronger HF Team Leveraging the Power of Nursing-Webinar Recording

Video Transcription

Video Summary

This webinar focuses on strengthening heart failure care by leveraging nursing roles within multidisciplinary teams, critical in light of increasing heart failure prevalence and shifting toward value-based care models, effective 2027. Presenters Megan Fitzgibbons from Intermountain Health and Kayla Roberts from Winchester Medical Center shared practical models emphasizing nursing integration to optimize patient outcomes and control costs.<br /><br />Megan described Intermountain Health’s approach in Nevada, where they enhanced heart failure outpatient care by expanding nursing roles into advanced nurse navigators and clinical patient-facing nurses. They implemented an outpatient diuresis clinic allowing prompt treatment of early exacerbations, reducing hospital admissions and generating significant cost savings. They also piloted asynchronous digital health programs (like Story Health) that empowered nurses to monitor and titrate guideline-directed medical therapy (GDMT) remotely, improving medication optimization while freeing provider time. Nurses led standardizing triage tools, referral pathways, and data-driven protocols crucial for coordinated, proactive care.<br /><br />Kayla detailed Winchester Medical Center’s heart failure clinic which employs a nurse-driven GDMT clinic and remote patient monitoring (RPM) with dedicated nursing roles to provide stepped care throughout patient journeys. Nurses handle medication management, patient education, triage, and monitoring via multiple platforms including CardioMEMS, significantly reducing readmissions and enhancing patient engagement. The team emphasizes role clarity, cross-training, and operating at top-of-license to improve efficiency and nurse satisfaction.<br /><br />Both stressed the importance of aligned leadership, strategic role definition, and data to justify nursing investments, emphasizing nurses as pivotal to heart failure program success. Their examples highlight how integrating nursing in outpatient heart failure care supports improved clinical outcomes, patient experience, and financial sustainability amid evolving healthcare landscapes.

Keywords

heart failure care

nursing roles

multidisciplinary teams

value-based care

advanced nurse navigators

outpatient diuresis clinic

digital health programs

guideline-directed medical therapy

remote patient monitoring

nurse-driven clinics