Continuity of care prism process applied to the congestive heart failure population.

Emphasis in healthcare during the 1990s has been both to provide optimal wellness and function with quality in a cost-effective manner. The Continuity of Care Prism Process was developed to meet the need to guide clients along the continuum of care and to achieve continuity of care. Advanced practice nurses are the "expert" clinicians in a position to care manage clients and meet the financial and quality constraints currently being placed on healthcare agencies. In this article, the vehicle used to demonstrate the Continuity of Care Prism Process is a congestive heart failure clinical pathway.