National AFib Awareness Month
Join the American Heart Association in September to help reduce the impacts of Atrial Fibrillation (AFib) through education & improvements in patient care.
Reducing The Impact of AFib Together
Atrial Fibrillation (AFib) numbers are rising in the U.S. For healthcare professionals, this signals a potential increase in the number of stroke and heart failure patients. By providing education and resources for professionals and patients, we're committed to generating awareness and improving patient care to save lives.
The Importance of Improved Care
Without treatment, Atrial Fibrillation can lead to blood clots, stroke, heart failure, and other heart-related complications. Compared to people without, AFib patients experience:
- 5x increased risk of stroke
- 3x increased risk of heart failure
- 2x increased risk of dementia
Growing Numbers
Before the Covid-19 pandemic, AFib numbers in the US were on the rise. In 2001, experts predicted the number of Americans living with AFib would double by 2050. Today, those numbers are further exacerbated by the impacts of the virus. Research suggests AFib is likely to influence more Americans, and could put more people at greater risk of stroke and heart failure than previously expected.
Educational Webinars
Join us live in September for specialized AFib Month webinars. Invite your colleagues or host a lunch and learn with your teams to spread awareness and augment staff education. Webinars will be recorded and shared for future use.
Importance and Improvement in CHA2DS2-VASc Documentation
September 8th | 12:00 - 1:00pm CST
Join as we review the importance of CHA2DS2-VASc Score documentation for AFib
patients. Learn how Stanford Health Care
and Northwestern Memorial Hospital have implemented process improvement
initiatives around CHA2DS2-VASc Score documentation as well as
utilizing Get With The Guidelines®-AFib data to improve outcomes.
The Social Determinants of Atrial Fibrillation: Learning from the Past to Transform the Future
September 21st | 12:00 - 1:00pm CST
Social determinants — such as race and ethnicity, financial resources, residential environment, and health literacy — have prominent roles in the evaluation, treatment and management of atrial fibrillation. In this talk, Dr. Essien will summarize the contributions of social determinants to the patient experience and outcomes associated with atrial fibrillation and identify opportunities for future research and policy change to address the social determinants of atrial fibrillation.
Plug In With Podcasts
Focused on AFib education, this series of Atrial Fibrillation podcasts provides insight into common treatment barriers, model sharing, and more.
Learn the importance of creating administrative buy-in, setting up an AFib clinic, and creating a multidisciplinary team to better treat patients and improve outcomes.
Join the Conversation on Social Media
Share social media materials to lead conversations on AFib in your network.
Patient Resources & Guidelines
Keep these tools on hand for patient education, internal quality improvement, and AFib awareness.
Three Things You Can Do Today
Better awareness, education and patient care begins with you. If you or your hospital is interested in improving patient care for AFib patients, here are a few quick ideas to get the ball rolling now.
Consult the Data
Inquire with your quality improvement leaders, or dig into existing registries. Is your hospital seeing significant numbers of stroke and heart failure patients with AFib?
Talk to Your Chief of Cardiology
Three questions to ask:
- What is the AFib patient through put?
- What AFib-specific protocols are used hospital-wide?
- Are patients receiving guideline directed therapy at discharge?
Raise Awareness
Share the materials and information found on this page. Consider emailing AFib Month information to internal stakeholders.
Distribute AFib-related education on your social media. Leading the conversation increases public education and improves understanding.
Get With The Guidelines® - AFib
Designed to assist hospital care teams in consistently providing the latest evidence-based treatment for their AFib patients. The program also offers a means of monitoring the quality of AFib care in U.S. hospitals to build a database for continued research and further quality improvement.Get With The Guidelines-AFib Hospital Recognition
Hospitals that participate actively and consistently in Get With The Guidelines®-AFib are eligible for public recognition. It's an opportunity to hone a competitive edge in the marketplace by providing tangible evidence of your commitment to quality care.
Congratulations to our recognized hospitals.
