“The important role of patients and caregivers should be recognised in future research opportunities,” says Aistė Štaraitė as she presented to the European Parliament on the Heart Failure Mission.

On 25 October, The Heart Failure Policy Network launched the European Heart Failure Mission statement at the European Parliament. This was the largest gathering of the heart failure community at the European Parliament since 2016 and will provide firm foundations for the multi-year campaign to drive political urgency on heart failure.

As the leading cause of preventable hospitalisations in Europe, heart failure must be prioritised. Addressing the prevalence of heart failure will be a significant contributor to achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 3.4 of reducing the burden of non-communicable disease. It is also essential to improve outcomes to ensure people with heart failure can enjoy healthy, independent lives.