Heart Failure Center
The Austin Heart Heart Failure Center was established in 1998 as the first of its kind, comprehensive and state-of-the-art program to meet the exclusive needs of our patients with heart failure.
You may be referred to the Heart Failure Center by your primary care provider, your cardiologist, or you may refer yourself.
Goals of the Heart Failure Center
- Identify and treat reversible causes of heart failure
- Educate patients and families
- Provide aggressive outpatient treatment to minimize hospitalizations and maximize quality of life for patients with chronic heart failure
- Offer research protocols to advance knowledge in the treatment of heart failure.
Heart failure is a complex disease process that is best managed with a multidisciplinary approach. The cardiologists, physician assistants, nurses and technicians who work in the Heart Failure Center treat patients through a multi-faceted approach that includes:
- Diagnosis
- Patient and family education about medication, diet and lifestyle changes
- Novel therapies (ventricular assist devices)
- Transplant evaluation
- Hospice Referral
Meet the Heart Failure Team
- Medical Director
- Heart Failure Specialists
- David L. Morris, MD
- Scott Blois, MD
- Cheryl Hurtado, RN, MSN, CNS
- Kunjan Bhatt, MD
- Clinical Nurse Specialist
- Donna Weige
- Staff Nurses
- Home Health Services
- Social Workers
- Nutritionist
- Pharmacist
- Cardiac Rehabilitation
- Hospice
Contact Us
Feel free to contact us by calling 512-206-3676, 1-800-803-6960 ext. 3676 or via e-mail. Our office hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
What is Heart Failure?
Heart failure is a complex, progressive disease process occurring when the heart’s pumping action is ineffective in meeting the basic metabolic requirements of your body. Symptoms of heart failure can range from mild shortness of breath to severe breathing impairment. Heart Failure can result from any structural or functional cardiac disorder that impairs the ability of the left ventricle to fill with or eject blood.
Causes of Heart Failure Include:
- Acute Heart attack
- Uncontrolled blood pressure
- Cardiomyopathy due to prior heart attack, viral infection of the heart, toxin exposure or some types of chemotherapy
- Aortic valve disease including aortic stenosis or aortic insufficiency
- Mitral valve disease including mitral regurgitation or stenosis
- Bacterial endocarditis
