WE’RE WORKING TOWARDS
A BETTER PATIENT JOURNEY
FOR OVER A MILLION
CANADIANS AFFECTED BY
HEART VALVE DISEASE

Report

“The patient perspective was a common thread throughout this report.”

Dr. Philippe Pibarot

A First of its Kind Report Details
the Optimal Patient Journey

Heart Valve Disease: Working together to create a better patient journey is a first of its kind report providing a comprehensive view of the heart valve disease patient journey.

The full report spans the journey from awareness and detection through diagnosis, monitoring, treatment and follow-up, identifying gaps. It includes patient stories and recommendations for improving care. The 2-page summary is an overview of the gaps and key recommendations.

Full Report
Report
2-Page Summary
Report
Report

Heart Valve Disease: Working together to create a better patient journey provides clear guidance and a road map to reduce the burden of heart disease in years to come.

As the Population Ages,
Heart Valve Disease is on the Rise

Heart Valve Disease is a common,
serious but treatable cardiovascular
condition.
If left untreated the most
common form of heart valve disease
(aortic stenosis) when severe, is
associated with a mortality rate of
25% to 50% per year*.
With Canada’s population growing older, the
burden of heart valve disease is on the rise.
68%
Hospitalizations for heart valve
disease increased by 68%
between 2007 and 2017*.

* Heart Valve Disease: Working together to create a better patient  journey

There are opportunities
to improve care across
the whole patient journey, from raising awareness, improving early detection and diagnosis, through to
ensuring timely and
appropriate treatment
and long term follow up

Symptoms

Symptoms, if they occur, often mimic general signs of aging, and people experiencing them may not think to consult a doctor.

When signs and symptoms
occur, they might include:

  • shortness of breath
  • fatigue
  • chest pain
  • dizziness
  • fainting
  • heart palpitations
  • swelling of ankles, feet or abdomen

A person experiencing any of these symptoms should see their primary care physician.

Improve Awareness and Early Detection, Especially in Older Adults are Key

Timely detection of heart valve disease through identification of a heart murmur is essential to avoid irreversible heart damage and to improve patient outcomes*.

Many patients in advanced stages of heart valve disease are asymptomtic, which is why regular screening with a stethoscope check is important.

* Heart Valve Disease: Working together to create a better patient  journey

Stethiscope
Quotes

PATIENT STORY
DAVID SMITH

Following my experience, I have become an active advocate for raising awareness about heart valve disease and encourage friends to get regular stethoscope checks.

Watch Dave’s Story

The Patient Care Journey is Often Different for Women

The causes, mechanisms and evolution of heart valve disease differ substantially in women and in men.

Women may develop different symptoms of valve disease. Because of these differences, valve diseases are under detected, under diagnosed, and thus under treated to a greater extent in women*.

* Heart Valve Disease: Working together to create a better patient  journey

Woman and doctorWoman

Reducing the Burden,
Improving the Quality of Life

Actions taken now will reduce the future burden on society in terms of impaired quality of life, avoidable deaths and costs to the health systems.

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The Optimal Patient Journey for
Heart Valve Disease

AWARENESS OF SYMPTOMS

People are aware of symptoms of heart valvedisease and present to primary care or treating physician

DETECTION IN PRIMARY CARE

Primary care physician proactively performsauscultation to detect a heart murmur

REFERRAL, WORK-UP AND MONITORING

Patientis referred for an echocardiogram to confirm diagnosis

TREATMENT AND LONG-TERM MONITORING

Treatment decisions are made through discussionsbetween the patient and the multidisciplinary care team, based on clinicalguidelines and patient preferences

INTERVENTION AND LONG-TERM MONITORING

Patient receives a valve repair or replacementthrough a surgical or transcatheter approach. Multidisciplinary team providesregular follow-up to ensure recovery and return to normal functioning

AWARENESS OF SYMPTOMS
DETECTION IN PRIMARY CARE
REFERRAL, WORK-UP AND MONITORING
TREATMENT AND LONG-TERM MONITORING
INTERVENTION AND LONG-TERM MONITORING
NON-INTERVENTIONAL TREATMENT

There are opportunities to improve care across the whole patient journey, from raising awareness, improving early detection and diagnosis, through to ensuring timely and
appropriate treatment and long term follow up.

Quotes

Specific Recommendations Along the Patient Care Journey:
A Roadmap for Health System Stakeholders

AWARENESS OF SYMPTOMS
DETECTION IN PRIMARY CARE
DIAGNOSIS VIA ECHOCARDIOGRAM
REFERRAL, WORK-UP AND MONITORING
TREATMENT AND LONG-TERM FOLLOW-UP

Overarching Recommendations
Along the Entire Care Journey

EMBED PATIENT EDUCATION AND SHARED DECISION-MAKING IN ALL STAGES OF CARE

CONFIGURE CARE AROUND DEDICATED MULTIDISCIPLINARY HEART VALVE CLINICS AND TEAMS

Facilitate integration of digital and remote technologies into care

invest in data collection and research on heart valve patient-centered outcomes

Reduce inequalities in access to all components of heart valve care

Acknowledgements

Heart Valve Voice Canada would like to acknowledge and thank The Health Policy Partnership for their work writing Heart Valve Disease: Working together to create a better patient journey report and the Advisory Council for their co-authorship and who made this first of its kind report possible.

We are also indebted to our patient community for their invaluable contributions and patient lived experiences which will continue to inform our work with stakeholders.

The report was developed as an adaptation of the EU report by the same name,  which was commissioned by the Global Heart Hub and published jointly by the Global Heart Hub and The Health Policy Partnership in 2020.

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Man and doctorMan