Andalusia strengthens detection and care for heart failure

Andalusia boosts care for heart failure (HF) through an innovative program that enhances early detection, prognosis, and quality of life for patients.

The Clinical University Hospital Virgen de la Victoria hosted today a conference with nearly fifty professionals from the Andalusian Health System to highlight the improvements achieved with the MAIC program (Care Models for Patients with Heart Failure), promoted by the Andalusian Health Service (SAS) in collaboration with Boehringer Ingelheim, to propose enhancements that address the main challenges in managing heart failure in Andalusia.

In this context, in 2023, the three challenges of this disease's care in Andalusia were identified, and an improvement care plan was designed, which has been implemented in six health areas in the provinces of Seville, Málaga, Jaén, and Granada. Additionally, the conference presented the main achievements obtained after two years of work in the health areas. Among them, improvements in the design of protocols in the patient care process with heart failure from diagnosis to treatment and follow-up.

Specifically, the conference held at the hospital in Málaga reviewed the achievements made possible by the MAIC program, which, in collaboration with SAS, allowed the implementation of an action plan with specific solutions that advance towards an integrated, efficient healthcare model, focused on achieving the best outcomes for patients with HF, which affects 800,000 adults in Spain, and which —according to patient organization Cardioalianza— is considered the most common cardiovascular disease in Andalusia.

MAIC Results

With the completion of this program's implementation in these six Andalusian health areas, the conference presented the main achievements of the project. Among these results, the improvement in early detection of heart failure, which in some health areas has doubled compared to the capacity for early diagnosis before the implementation of MAIC.

This means that, in some of these health areas, the volume of patients receiving an early diagnosis and treatment has increased compared to two years ago. This represents a leap in healthcare quality, prognosis, and quality of life for patients, as early diagnosis is essential to improve patient outcomes.

Similarly, thanks to the improvements implemented in the last two years, some community health areas have managed to increase efficiency in the use of available resources to treat this pathology. Additionally, the creation of guidelines and action protocols has been promoted, facilitating the coordination between different levels of healthcare in detecting, treating, and monitoring patients.