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Heart Failure: Diagnosis and Initial Management for the Primary Care Provider
PLEASE NOTE: These materials are intended ONLY for those who attended the live webcast held on September 17, 2025.
Activity description
This live webcast is designed to enhance primary care providers’ understanding of the evolving landscape of heart failure classification and treatment. Participants will explore the current nomenclature for heart failure staging and functional classification, with a focus on stratification by ejection fraction. The session will review the latest guideline-directed medical therapy for heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF), including updates on pharmacologic and device-based interventions. Additionally, common barriers to implementing optimal therapy will be discussed, along with practical strategies to improve adherence and patient outcomes.
This activity is designed to meet the educational needs of physicians, PAs, nurses, nurse practitioners, pharmacists and other HCPs who have an interest in learning about heart failure.
At the end of this webcast, participants should be able to:
- Describe current heart failure classification nomenclature, including stages, functional classes, and stratification by type based on ejection fraction.
- Discuss current guidelines and recommendations for the management of heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF).
- Identify barriers to initiating and optimizing medication therapy for HFrEF and propose strategies to overcome these challenges.
Provided by
This activity is provided by Optum Health Education and Optum Health, Clinical Performance.
Commercial support
No commercial support was received for this activity.
Required hardware/software
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Moderator
Joshua Jacobs, MD, FAAFP
National Medical Director
Optum Health
Presenter
Michael Almaleh, MD, FACC
Senior Medical Director
Wellmed Medical Management
About the presenter
Dr. Michael Almaleh is a Senior Medical Director and Chief of Cardiology and Specialty Care for Wellmed Medical Group, a role that he has held for the past 13 years. He was previously the Chairperson of the Optum Cardiology Steering Committee and currently serves as the Optum Cardiology Forum and Heart Failure Subcommittee Chairs. Dr Almaleh is an active clinician/educator, currently serving as the Associate Program Director for the Texas Institute for Graduate Medical Education and Research (TIGMER) Internal Medicine Residency Program.
Dr. Almaleh received his M.D. from Boston University School of Medicine where he graduated Summa Cum Laude. He completed his residency in Internal Medicine at the University of Washington - Seattle, and his fellowship in cardiovascular diseases at Wilford Hall and Brooke Army Medical Centers. In addition, he received advance training in heart failure and cardiac transplantation, cardiac device implantation and management, and cardiovascular computed tomography. Dr Almaleh is board certified in Cardiovascular Diseases as well as Nuclear Cardiology. He is a fellow of the American College of Cardiology, and is a member of the Alpha Omega Alpha honor society.
Activity planners
Elizabeth Albert, MD
Clinical Activity Manager
Optum Health Education
Sarah Chart, RN
Vice President
Optum Health Education
Joshua Jacobs, MD, FAAFP
National Medical Director
Optum Health
Disclosures of relevant financial relationships
In accordance with the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education's (ACCME) Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Continuing Education, Optum Health Education (OHE) requires all those in control of educational content to disclose their financial relationships with ineligible companies within the prior 24 months. Ineligible companies are defined by the ACCME as companies whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling, or distributing health care products used by or on patients. Individuals must disclose all financial relationships, regardless of the amount, with ineligible companies and regardless of their view of the relevance of the relationship to the education. OHE ensures that the content is independent of commercial bias.
The activity faculty and planners have no financial relationships to disclose.
Accreditation statement
In support of improving patient care, this activity has been planned and implemented by Optum Health Education and Optum Health, Clinical Performance. Optum Health Education is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), to provide continuing education for the health care team.
Credit designation statements
Nurses
The participant will be awarded up to 1.00 contact hour(s) of credit for attendance and completion of supplemental materials.
Nurse practitioners
The American Academy of Nurse Practitioners Certification Program (AANPCP) accepts credit from organizations accredited by the ACCME and ANCC.
Pharmacists/Pharmacy technicians
This activity is approved for 1.00 contact hour ([0.10] CEU) in states that recognize ACPE.
Attending the full program will earn 1.00 contact hour.
Unique Activity Number(s): JA0007123-9999-25-059-L01-P/T
Physicians
Optum Health Education designates this live activity for a maximum of 1.00 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
PAs
The American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA) accepts credit from organizations accredited by the ACCME.
Attendance
A certificate of attendance will be provided to learners upon completion of activity requirements, enabling participants to register with licensing boards or associations that have not been preapproved for credits. To apply for credit types not listed above, participants should use the procedure established by the specific organization from which they wish to obtain credit.
Available Credit
- 1.00 ACPE - Pharmacists
- 1.00 ACPE - Pharmacy Technicians
- 1.00 AMA - Physicians
- 1.00 ANCC - Nurses
- 1.00 Attendance - General Attendance
These materials are intended ONLY for those who attended the live webcast held on September 17, 2025.
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