Hospitals drive progress in Japan’s heart failure care

As Japan’s population ages, the burden of heart failure continues to grow, underscoring the need for earlier intervention and consistent use of evidence-based therapies. Recent research suggests the impact of heart failure in Japan, which has the most people over age 65 in the Asia-Pacific region, may be greater than previously recognized, particularly among these older adults.

In response, the American Heart Association has recognized three Japanese national university hospitals — Kyoto, Kyushu and Nagoya — for their commitment to improving heart failure care. Each received a Get With The Guidelines® Heart Failure award for consistent adherence to guideline-directed treatment and practices. These hospitals were recognized at the Japanese Circulation Society Conference on 20 – 22 March.

The hospitals are also participating in a Heart Failure Center Certification pilot program that supports not only holistic review on treatment pathways and protocols to reduce variations in care, but also continuous quality improvement through standardized data collection, performance benchmarking and feedback.

These milestones reflect the growing global collaboration to strengthen systems of care and expand access to high-quality, evidence-based heart failure treatment in Japan and elsewhere.