Released 6 June 2022
Request:
We are conducting a project which involves mapping heart failure services across the NHS and this request for information regarding the services provided by your organisation is an important part of this.
I would be grateful if you could please answer the following questions.
1. What is the name of your Heart Failure Service?
2. Population served by the Heart Failure Service?
3. What is the service setting?
a) Acute hospital
b) Community hospital
c) Integrated care
d) Primary care
4. Approximate case load of Heart Failure patients seen per week?
5. Number of follow ups in 2021/22?
6. Which populations do you provide the following services for and are you commissioned for these services?
a) Heart Failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFrEF)
b) Heart Failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFpEF)
7. Staff dedicated to Heart Failure:
a) Number of Heart Failure consultants (pa’s)
b) Number of Heart Failure nurses (WTE)
c) Number of Heart Failure Pharmacists (WTE)
8. Which of these (a to g) does your NHS organisation have?
a) Access to open access ECHO
b) Access to Cardiac rehab?
c) HF Multi Disciplinary Team (MDT)
d) Cardiologist Non HF specialist
e) Cardiologist HF specialist
f) Cardiology Pharmacist
g) GPwER (previously called GPwSI)
9. Which of the following (h to n) service models do you provide?
h) Acute inpatient
i) HF outpatient
j) Hospital based ambulatory heart failure unit
k) Community based ambulatory heart failure unit
l) Home based service / care
m) Community based clinic
n) Heart Failure virtual ward
10. Do you believe that the current service specification adequately reflects the range and volume of activity your service provides? (Yes / No)
Information disclosed:
Please note University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust was formed on 1 April 2021, with the merger of Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust and Western Sussex Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
Whilst we continue to align services under the merged Trust, our cardiology services continue to operate separately to ensure there is no disruption for our patients. We have therefore provided information below relevant to the services under each legacy Trust. We regret any inconvenience this may cause.
Heart Failure Service in hospitals under legacy Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust
1. Heart Failure team (East)
2. 500,000
3. a) Acute Hospital
4. Consultant led Rapid Access Heart Failure clinics have 16 new patient slots and 6 follow up slots; nurse led clinics and HF ward rounds see approximately 55 patients per week.
5. 2,418 follow up appointments
6.
a) yes
b) yes
7.
a) 20 PAs
b) 5.5WTE
c) 0.2WTE
8.
a) Access to open access ECHO – Yes
b) Access to Cardiac rehab? – Yes
c) HF Multi Disciplinary Team (MDT) – Yes
d) Cardiologist Non HF specialist – Yes
e) Cardiologist HF specialist – Yes
f) Cardiology Pharmacist – Yes
g) GPwER (previously called GPwSI) – No
9.
h) Acute inpatient – Yes
i) HF outpatient – Yes
j) Hospital based ambulatory heart failure unit – No
k) Community based ambulatory heart failure unit – No
l) Home based service / care – Yes, run by community services
m) Community based clinic – Yes, by community team
n) Heart Failure virtual ward – No, this is currently being developed
10. This part of your request appears to seek an opinion. The Freedom of Information Act applies to recorded information held by public authorities and not conjecture by staff. This question is not considered valid under the terms of the Act. If you wish to clarify this part of your request we will be happy to reconsider our response.
Heart Failure Services in hospitals under legacy Western Sussex Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust:
Please note both Worthing Hospital and St Richard’s Hospital have a Heart Failure service so we have provided our response for each site.
Worthing Hospital:
1. Heart Failure team – Worthing Hospital
2. 450,000 (across Worthing Hospital and St Richard’s Hospital)
3. a) Acute Hospital
4. Rapid Access Heart Failure Clinic includes 6 patient slots per week and 20 patients per week seen on wards by nurses. This does not include patients seen in general cardiac clinics.
5. 1,560 follow up appointments
6.
a) yes
b) yes – in hospital and for admission avoidance; single follow-up following discharge.
7
a) 0 (nil) PAs
b) 4.5WTE
c) 0 (nil)
8.
a) Access to open access ECHO – No
b) Access to Cardiac rehab? – Yes
c) HF Multi Disciplinary Team (MDT) – Yes
d) Cardiologist Non HF specialist – Yes
e) Cardiologist HF specialist – Yes but accredited in general medicine – does not work full time as Cardiologist
f) Cardiology Pharmacist – No
g) GPwER (previously called GPwSI) – No
9.
h) Acute inpatient – Yes
i) HF outpatient – Yes
j) Hospital based ambulatory heart failure unit – Yes
k) Community based ambulatory heart failure unit – No
l) Home based service / care – No
m) Community based clinic – No
n) Heart Failure virtual ward – No, this is currently being developed
10. This part of your request appears to seek an opinion. The Freedom of Information Act applies to recorded information held by public authorities and not conjecture by staff. This question is not considered valid under the terms of the Act. If you wish to clarify this part of your request we will be happy to reconsider our response.
St Richard’s Hospital
1. Heart Failure team – St Richard’s Hospital
2. 450,000 (across Worthing Hospital and St Richard’s Hospital)
3. a) Acute Hospital
4. 20-25 face to face and 75-100 telephone consultations weekly.
5. We are not currently able to extract this data from our administration system. We regret any inconvenience this may cause.
6.
a) yes (in-patient education)
b) yes
7.
a) 1 hour per week
b) 3.06 WTE
c) 0 WTE
8.
a) Access to open access ECHO – Yes
b) Access to Cardiac rehab? – No
c) HF Multi Disciplinary Team (MDT) – Yes
d) Cardiologist Non HF specialist – Yes
e) Cardiologist HF specialist – Yes
f) Cardiology Pharmacist – No
g) GPwER (previously called GPwSI) – No
9.
h) Acute inpatient – Yes
i) HF outpatient – Yes
j) Hospital based ambulatory heart failure unit – No
k) Community based ambulatory heart failure unit – Community service is separate to the service provided by the Trust.
l) Home based service / care – No
m) Community based clinic – No
n) Heart Failure virtual ward – No
10. This part of your request appears to seek an opinion. The Freedom of Information Act applies to recorded information held by public authorities and not conjecture by staff. This question is not considered valid under the terms of the Act. If you wish to clarify this part of your request we will be happy to reconsider our response.