What factors influence the decision to take over care of patients with heart failure from a general practitioner?
The decision to take over care of patients with heart failure from a general practitioner is based on patient need, primarily from the CHF perspective, and the perceived ability of the general practitioner to fulfil these needs. Complexity of the patient interacts with the health care providers perspective, comfort level and available resources to influence referral and consultation practice. Some HF professionals acknowledge the GPs importance in ensuring continuity of care, but take over care despite of this because they doubt the ability of the GPs to manage heart failure. 