Identifying community based chronic heart failure patients in the last year of life: a comparison of the Gold Standards Framework Prognostic Indicator Guide and the Seattle Heart Failure Model.

Objective: To assess the clinical utility of the Gold Standards Framework Prognostic Indicator Guide (GSF) and the Seattle Heart Failure Model (SHF) to identify patients with chronic heart failure (CHF) in the last year of life.

Design, Setting And Patients: An observational cohort study of 138 community based ambulatory patients with New York Heart Association (NYHA) class III and IV CHF managed by a specialist heart failure nursing team.

Main Outcome Measures: 12 month mortality, and sensitivity and specificity of GSF and SHF.

The use of innovative methods designed to relieve social isolation in patients with chronic heart failure; volunteer befriending, forums and a newsletter.

Introduction: Social isolation in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF) is an adverse prognostic factor. This paper reports the creation of a supportive patient/carer network (Heart Failure Support Service), led by a voluntary sector/National Health Service (NHS) partnership which involved volunteer befriending, regular patient and carer forum and a newsletter.

The Project: Over 3 years, 37 volunteers were 'befrienders' to over 50 individuals with CHF.