Gaps in Heart Failure Care: The Need for Effective Communication and Health Literacy-concordant Patient Education

Heart failure (HF) care has increased in complexity over the past decade, with a higher number of interventions and medications offered to patients as part of routine HF care. Studies have consistently shown poor patient understanding of their HF diagnosis and treatment plans, impacting their overall outcomes. Effective communication and literacy-concordant patient education are two key players in comprehensive disease understanding. However, wide variability in HF patient education and the usage of literacy-discordant material have resulted in ineffective patient education, further contributing to fragmented patient understanding of their HF diagnosis. Innovative interventions targeting communication strategies and education delivery methods could significantly alter care delivery and improve multiple domains in HF care.