Heart Failure Support Services in Queensland
Guideline number: QH-GDL-517
Effective date: 23 June 2026
Review date: 23 June 2029
Supersedes: New guideline
This guideline provides a clinical framework for Heart Failure Support Services (HFSS) to support the implementation of best practice for patients with symptomatic heart failure in order to improve clinical outcomes, reduce avoidable hospitalisations, and ensure consistent, high-quality care across hospital and community settings.
Heart failure (HF) is a clinical syndrome caused by structural or functional cardiac abnormalities resulting in impaired cardiac output and/or elevated filling pressures (1).
Phenotypes include:
- HFrEF (heart failure with reduced ejection fraction ≤40%)
- HFmrEF (heart failure with a mildly reduced ejection fraction 41-49%)
- HFpEF (heart failure with preserved ejection fraction > 50%)
- HF related to valvular heart disease
- HF manifesting as isolated right heart failure
- HF related to pericardial disease
The aims are to:
- Improve outcomes for patients with symptomatic heart failure
- Optimise guideline-directed medical therapy (GDMT)
- Reduce avoidable hospitalisations
- Standardise service delivery of HFSS care across hospital and community settings