Heart Failure Care Delivery in the COVID19 Era: The Patient's Perspective

Purpose The SARS-CoV-2 outbreak changed healthcare and healthcare delivery around the world. Hospital systems saw a dramatic decline in patient volumes both in the inpatient and outpatient settings. Surveying our center's heart failure (HF) clinic population, we aimed to better understand our patients’ perception of COVID19, their fears, and care delivery preferences in this new era. Methods Consecutive patients with chronic HF presenting to our clinic either in person or virtually were approached to complete a ten question Likert scale survey (Table 1). Acutely decompensated patients and heart transplant recipients were excluded. The survey was anonymous and voluntary. Results 109 patients completed the survey. The average age was 62±14 years, 73 (67%) were male and 64 (59%) had a diagnosis of HF with reduced ejection fraction. Overall, our patients were afraid of contracting COVID19 and getting sicker given their underlying cardiac condition but were not hesitant to call the clinic or come to the emergency department with worsening HF symptoms. Patients responded that virtual appointments are less preferable and less effective than in-person visits. Although the difference did not reach statistical significance, female patients and those with HF with preserved ejection fraction were more concerned. Conclusion Overall, patients with HF are concerned about their increased risk of contracting COVID19. However, they are not likely to avoid healthcare contact and preferred in-person over virtual visits.