DEFINITIONS

ICARe-HF: Improving Care through Accreditation and Recognition in Heart Failure

Advanced Quality of Care Centres (QCCs) will include national reference centres that provide inpatient care for advanced/severely decompensated HF patients, and for heart transplant/mechanical circulatory support candidates and recipients.

QCC Director: the QCC director is the director of the centre/institution/HF unit

QCC Coordinator: the QCC Coordinator is the local HF expert within the centre/institution/HF unit

The QCC Director and the QCC Coordinator can be the same person.

A distinction will be made:

• Type A centres : Perform cardiac surgery such as heart transplants and/or mechanical circulatory implantations for candidates and recipients.
• Type A centres and Type B centres : Support cardiac surgery such as heart transplants and /or mechanical circulatory implantations for candidates and recipients:
• Identify the need for surgery for recipients / Assess the candidates’ profiles,
• Refer patients
• Undertake patients’ follow-up care.