Why heart failure patients won’t go to hospital
Have you ever put off seeing your doctor or going to the hospital because you are worried about crying wolf?
Well, this is the reality for patients with heart failure- a blanket term to describe a range of heart problems that end up causing heart failure.
Patients will experience breathlessness and fatigue in their day to day life, but it’s when symptoms such as these worsen that help is needed.
However, many patients with heart failure will wait until symptoms get severe before they seek help. Which has flow on affects about the care provided and the length of stay in hospital.
Serra Ivynian is a PhD student in the Faculty of Health at UTS. She is looking into the reasons why patients with heart failure go to hospital at the last minute. Serra talks to Ellen Leabeater.
Image: brykmantra on Flickr.
