Bow tie Model of Palliative Care as an Early Approach to Providing care for Patients with Heart Failure

Background & Objective: In patients with heart failure due to the complications of the disease and the lack of definitive curative treatment, in the majority of cases, the emphasis is laid on reducing these complications and the symptoms of the disease. Therefore, to manage the symptoms and the complications, and reduce the effect of the disease on the patients’ quality of life, in addition to routine care, additional care is required among which palliative care is of great importance. The present narrative review aimed to introduce bow tie model of palliative care as an early approach in care for patients with heart failure. Methodology: This study introduces early palliative care for patients with heart failure by reviewing the literature on the bowtie model. Results: Although the bow-tie model Early Palliative Care is an important part of end-of-life care, it is not limited to that stage. It is also applied for patients who are in the early stages of their disease. Conclusion: Based on the NYHA New York Heart Association functional classification, patients with heart failure are classified in one of four categories and it seems that bow tie model of palliative care is an effective method of reducing the symptoms, complications, and effect of the disease on the quality of life of the patients especially in the patients of Class I and class II who are in the early stages of the disease.