Heart failure care gaps found among Asian American ethnic groups

Using nearly a decade of data (2015–2023) from 800+ U.S. hospitals and more than 700,000 patients overall, Northwestern researchers found that when Asian American heart failure patients are separated by ethnicity, rather than grouped together as "Asian," important differences in care emerge across groups including Filipino, Vietnamese, Chinese, Asian Indian, Korean and Japanese patients. 

For example, Filipino and Vietnamese patients were least likely to receive complete, guideline-recommended heart failure care. The study wasn't designed to identify causes, but authors note the disparities may reflect differences in health literacy, English-language proficiency or financial resources.

The bigger story is about who gets counted, and who doesn't. Many U.S. hospitals still categorize patients simply as "Asian," which has long masked disparities within the fastest-growing racial group in the U.S. While in-hospital death rates were similar between Asian American and White patients, the study found gaps in medications, discharge planning and overall quality of care.

Senior author Dr. Nilay Shah, a preventive cardiologist at Northwestern, says the work is personal. "Growing up in an Asian American community, I saw firsthand the challenges my family and friends experienced in accessing health care services," Shah said. He's available to discuss the findings, why these disparities went unnoticed for so long and what health systems could do differently.