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Masterclass · In person · Hertfordshire
Herts Heart Failure Masterclass for Primary Care
A case-based masterclass on the 2025 and 2026 heart-failure guidance, the QOF HF009 indicator and the NHS cardiovascular framework, taught as the workflow of a working primary-care clinic.
Date
30 Jan 2027
Saturday
Time
08:30 to 15:30
Registration from 08:30
Venue
Elstree
610 The Avenue, Elstree WD6 3TJ
CPD
6 CPD points
Credited by New Vision University (UK Faculty)
Format
In person
Case-based, two table workshops
Fee
Free
Registration required; UK healthcare professionals only
Timetable
Saturday 30 January 2027: the programme
| Time | Session | Speaker |
|---|---|---|
| 08:30 to 09:00 | Registration, welcome coffee and sponsor stands | |
| 09:00 to 09:10 | Welcome: aims, the day, and the case for change | Prof Rajesh Varma, Convenor |
| 09:10 to 09:35 | Finding the missing patients: pre-heart-failure, diagnosis and coding | Prof Rajesh Varma, Convenor |
| 09:35 to 10:00 | What is new in 2026, and optimising heart failure by class: the ESC guideline, NICE finerenone and QOF HF009 | Dr Rebecca Lane, Consultant Cardiologist, Harefield Hospital |
| 10:00 to 10:30 | Reading the echo before you file it | Dr Aigul Baltabaeva, Consultant Cardiologist, Harefield Hospital |
| 10:30 to 11:00 | Refreshments and sponsor networking | |
| 11:00 to 11:30 | Workshop 1: from natriuretic peptide and echo report to a decision | All faculty, at tables |
| 11:30 to 12:10 | Why look deeper: causes and the conditions around heart failure | Dr Ameet Bakhai, Consultant Cardiologist, Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust |
| 12:10 to 13:25 | Buffet lunch, sponsor stands and networking | |
| 13:25 to 14:00 | Who gets a device, and what secondary-care triage expects of primary care | Dr Henry Oluwasefunmi Savage, Consultant Cardiologist in Heart Failure and Devices, Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust, Basildon |
| 14:00 to 14:20 | The community heart-failure team: what it does and what it expects of primary care | Zoe Jayne, Clinical Lead, Heart Failure and Cardiac Rehabilitation, West Herts Community Heart Failure Service, Central London Community Healthcare NHS Trust |
| 14:20 to 14:35 | Refreshments and sponsor networking | |
| 14:35 to 15:05 | Lifestyle medicine and its role in managing CVRM-HF | Dr Camille Hirons, GP; Vice President, British Society of Lifestyle Medicine |
| 15:05 to 15:25 | Workshop 2: the CVRM-HF optimisation clinic | Prof Rajesh Varma, Convenor, with faculty |
| 15:25 to 15:30 | Take-home messages, one action each, and certificates | Prof Rajesh Varma, Convenor |
Sponsorship and partnership
MD Acumen is partnering with Essex Medical Society to convene this course.
This course is supported by third-party exhibitors. Their names will be published on this page when the programme is finalised. Exhibitors have no involvement in the programme, the choice of speakers or the content of any talk, which are set by the course organisers and the faculty.
Why now
Heart failure care changed in 2025 and 2026
- Two new guidelines. NICE updated its chronic heart failure guideline in September 2025 (NG106); the ESC published a full new heart failure guideline in August 2026 and simplified the classification, a divergence from NICE that practices now have to reconcile when they code, prescribe and refer.
- A new QOF indicator. QOF 2026/27 introduced HF009, worth 12 points, which rewards all four pillars in heart failure with reduced ejection fraction.
- A national framework. The cardiovascular modern service framework of July 2026 sets a four-pillar ambition from 25% to 55% over three years (Priority 8).
- Late diagnosis. Eighty per cent of heart failure is still diagnosed in hospital; 40% had symptoms that could have triggered earlier assessment (Health Innovation East).
The statements above are carried from the page already live and are signed by the Course Director before the date; guideline versions are those named.
What you take away
Five things you will do differently
- Diagnose and code with confidence. Natriuretic-peptide thresholds and referral timeframes, the echo report decoded, and how to reconcile the ESC 2026 and NICE 2025 classifications.
- Optimise safely and quickly. The four pillars first-line, structured up-titration, iron deficiency, and exactly when to seek specialist advice or refer.
- Know the device exits. Who needs cardiac resynchronisation therapy or a defibrillator, and the cardiomyopathies not to miss.
- Run a CVRM-HF optimisation clinic. The searches that find under-treated patients beyond QOF, and how the clinic delivers HF009.
- Keep lifestyle in the plan. Adherence, and the community and lifestyle-medicine routes that keep people well between reviews.
Short faculty talks are paired with two table-based workshops built on anonymised Hertfordshire cases. Every delegate leaves with a two-page quick reference and a learning-reflection handout for appraisal and for use in clinic.
1 · Who it is for
UK healthcare professionals in primary and community care
GPs and GP trainees, practice and community nurses, heart-failure nurses, PCN and practice pharmacists, advanced clinical practitioners and physician associates, from Hertfordshire and neighbouring areas. Secondary-care colleagues are welcome. Open to UK-registered healthcare professionals only.
2 · Level
Pitched at advanced postgraduate level.
3 · Coverage
Partial by design: a day on heart failure in primary care. It does not cover the whole of cardiology.
4 · The award
Certificate of Completed Educational Activity. This course is credited with 6 CPD points by New Vision University (UK Faculty).
4b · Who conducts it, and who awards
This educational activity is conducted by MD Acumen. MD Acumen Ltd is a company registered in England and Wales (company number 16538952). MD Acumen is not an awarding body.
New Vision University, an international medical school listed on WDOMS, endorses this programme and verifies that the educational content and governance align with standard UK CPD guidelines. This course is credited with 6 CPD points.
No promotional sessions are included in the educational credit calculations.
Venue and CPD
Where, who for and how it is certified
- Venue. 610 The Avenue, Centennial Avenue, Elstree WD6 3TJ, the events venue adjacent to Village Hotel London Watford (venue confirmed). Dedicated on-site parking, free for delegates; just off junction 4 of the M1.
- Travel. Elstree and Borehamwood station (Thameslink, around 25 minutes from London St Pancras) is about two miles away; Edgware (Northern line) about two and a half.
- CPD. 6 CPD points, credited by New Vision University (UK Faculty). Every delegate receives a Certificate of Completed Educational Activity.
- Joining. Joining instructions are issued about 14 days before the event.
Free; registration required. Places are limited; availability is shown when you book. Registration is open to UK-registered healthcare professionals only and is confirmed after a registration check. Questions: enquiry@mdacumen.com.
Questions delegates ask
Is a Saturday realistic with PCN Enhanced Access rotas?
The course runs from 08:30 to 15:30. PCN clinical directors are being notified early so that rota leads can plan around the date.
What should I do before the day?
Nothing is required. The free Acumen Focus heart failure module covers ground on which the day builds, and a short pre-reading note is sent with the joining instructions.
Will the slides and handout be available afterwards?
Yes. A two-page quick reference and a web version of the teaching slides with self-test questions are published on this site after the meeting.
8 · What changed this month
The living curriculum, in public
Guidance is watched for change; when a cornerstone guideline moves, the affected teaching is reviewed, re-signed and re-dated by a named clinician.
Each entry names the module, the change, the signer and the date. The list is read from the learning platform; where it cannot load, see the change log.
Questions receive a personal response from Prof Rajesh Varma: enquiry@mdacumen.com.
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