Heart failure has reached epidemic proportions in the United States. The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute Reports that an estimated 4.8 million people in the United States have heart failure, and the number is growing quickly; in fact, about 400,000 new cases are diagnosed each year.

The good news: today, there are treatments and procedures that can help people with heart failure live longer, more productive and enjoyable lives, and many more treatments are being studied.

The bad news: many people with heart failure are not being properly treated. They are not taking the appropriate doses of medications that have been shown to be effective and they may not be following a proper diet.

That’s where UAMS Medical Center’s Heart Failure Treatment Program can help. The UAMS Medical Center’s Heart Failure Treatment Program provides immediate and long term multidisciplinary care for patients with all degrees of heart failure. In a single clinic, the Heart Failure Treatment Program staff offer comprehensive diagnostic evaluation, access to all available treatment options, and continuity of care throughout the disease course.

Caring Around the Clock

We’ve assembled a team of highly respected doctors and nurses specializing in heart failure. This team is accessible to you and your doctor 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. If you have a question, you don’t have to wait until your next appointment—just give us a call. We feel this is the only way to give heart failure patients the support they need.

We can help you manage every detail of your treatment program, or we can simply provide consultation to confirm that you are getting the right treatment for your condition. And we keep in touch with referring physicians so they can stay informed and involved in their patients’ progress.

How Do You Know it’s Heart Failure?"

To diagnose heart failure, physicians in the specialized program at UAMS Medical Center combine thorough medical history and physical examination of the patient with exercise testing, electrocardiography, echocardiography and/or cardiac catheterization. An electrocardiogram shows the doctor the pattern of the patient’s heartbeat. An echocardiogram allows the doctor to examine the structure and movement of the patient’s heart muscle—revealing any enlargement of the organ, the thickness of the heart’s walls, any problems with the valves and how well the heart pumps. Cardiac catheterization allows the physician to find blockages in the coronary arteries.

Part of a Network of Knowledge

Our Heart Failure Treatment Program is part of UAMS Medical Center, the patient care network of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.

The center combines the resources of: University Hospital; the Arkansas Cancer Research Center; the Harvey & Bernice Jones Eye Institute; the Outpatient Center; the Donald W. Reynolds Center on Aging; the Family Medical Center; and a number of associated clinics with a wide array of medical expertise. You can access these services by calling the UAMS Access Center at (501) 686-8000. Our doctors are also faculty members, so they are kept up-to-date on the latest developments in their specialties.

We can also offer many of our patients access to the latest treatments and procedures through voluntary participation in clinical trials, which increase our knowledge about treating heart failure. If you are interested and your doctors feel you meet the criteria for participation in a particular clinical trial, you’ll be given plenty of information so that you can make an informed decision. You, not your doctors or anyone else, will decide whether it is right for you.

Our role at UAMS will be to provide you with a team of doctors and nurses specialized in management of heart failure and heart transplantation. This team will be accessible to you and your doctor 24 hours a day for managing any and every detail of your heart failure treatment. It will be our responsibility to educate and support you and your family to give you the best quality of life possible. Our role as a research center will ensure that you will be given the chance to participate in trials involving the latest treatments.

How the Clinic Works

·         Cardiologists evaluate newly referred patients to detect reversible forms of heart dysfunction and outline optimal treatment strategies.

·         Nurse coordinators assist in the initial evaluation, coordinate individualized care plans, and provide education in health monitoring techniques for patients and families.

·         Dietitians provide nutrition intervention, education and follow-up.

·         Social workers provide interventions to maximize the patients’ and families’ psycho-social environment.

·         Physicians and nurse coordinators are available 24 hours a day, year round to assist patients and referring physicians with the most current diagnostic treatment information available.

Please feel free to call us, or have your doctor call us at (501) 686-5880.