I would venture to say that most of us reading this know someone that has high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or has had some type of cardiac event. We also know that early intervention including education and treatment of high blood pressure or other factors that impact heart health can make a difference. Lifestyle changes such as diet and exercise, smoking cessation and medication management help improve the overall quality of life, as well as prevent hospitalizations and complications.
February was National Heart Month, and even though the pressure of UDS is gone, I’d recommend that we keep the ‘pressure on’ blood pressure. On February 14, the Center for Disease Control’s (CDC), launched the Million Hearts® Hypertension Control Challenge to identify practices, clinicians, and health systems that have exceptional rates of hypertension control (>80%)with a goal of preventing 1 million cardiac events by 2022. The 2017 UDS National Data reveals that 62% of patients with Hypertension have BP control of <140/90. 62% of DRVS Users are performing at or above this level and 34% of DRVS centers are easily in range or reaching Million Hearts goal of 80% control. Your center might already be there! If so, you have until April 1 to submit your application, and if not, the challenge is on until 2022 so you are still in the game.
What’s your current blood pressure control rate for patients with Hypertension?
Are you able to follow up on patients and work with them to actively manage their hypertension?
Curious about the prevalence of hypertension in your population, identifying patients at risk and making sure they are appropriately diagnosed?
Monitor how well you are managing contributing factors to heart disease and hypertension.
Pull it all together
Determine the right combination and use of the tools to help you keep the ‘pressure’ on and keep blood pressure down.
As an example, learn how Lynn Community Health Center earned recognition as a Million Hearts Hypertension Control Champion using DRVS and improved workflows to achieve blood pressure control for 80% of Patients
Depending on your focus additional measures are available but may require additional mapping. These include measures to support Self Measured Blood Pressure programs (currently available) and Hypertension Treatment Intensification measures (future).
* The following are measures available in DRVS. If you have questions, please reach out to support.
** May require additional cost for mapping