Role of the Pharmacist for Improving Self-care and Outcomes in Heart Failure

This review highlights the current and emerging approaches for the role of the pharmacist for improving self-care and outcomes in heart failure management.

Pharmacists are contributing to heart failure management in a variety of settings, including hospitals, clinics, and communities. Different interventions which may be mediated by the pharmacist include drug adherence, discharge counseling, medication reconciliation, telephone follow-up, and recommendation of evidence-based medicines. Pharmacist engagement in heart failure management has demonstrated improved drug adherence, readmission rates, medication management, self-care ability, patient satisfaction, and heart failure knowledge. Some findings are mixed, especially for readmission rates. Improved medication management was reported in nearly all studies, despite significant heterogeneity in the models of care, patient populations, and study designs. This review highlights the requirement for large randomized trials with extended follow-up to confirm the impact of the role of the pharmacist in HF self-care, particularly through multidisciplinary-based interventions.