Nine health centers have been named 2017 Million Hearts Hypertension Control Champions for working with patients to achieve hypertension (high blood pressure) control rates at or above 70 percent. We’ve now learned more information about the types of interventions the winning health centers used to improve hypertension rates. These include:
- Self-measured blood pressure monitoring (SMBP), also known as home blood pressure monitoring. SMBP in conjunction with clinical support can improve access to care and quality of care for individuals with hypertension while making blood pressure control more convenient.
- Leveraging other care services (i.e., behavioral health clinics and dental clinics) to increase touch points to help patients.
- Applying population health management software solutions to electronic health records systems to track progress and provide tailored support.
- Sharing data between and among care teams and clinics.
NACHC has partnered with Primary Care Associations, Health Center Controlled Networks and health centers for the past three years as part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC’s) Million Hearts initiative. The initiative aims to prevent 1 million heart attacks and strokes by bringing together communities and public and private organizations to fight heart disease and stroke. NACHC is currently part of the team developing a national strategy to spread and scale integration and routinization of SMBP into hypertension diagnosis and management.
The nine health center 2017 Million Hearts Hypertension Control Champions are:
- Citrus Health Network, Inc.*; Hialeah, Florida
- Greater Elgin Family Care Center*; Elgin, Illinois
- LifeLong Medical Care Downtown Oakland Health Center*; Berkeley, California
- Lorain County Health & Dentistry*; Lorain, Ohio
- Lynn Community Health Center*; Lynn, Massachusetts
- North Hudson Community Action Corporation Health Center; West New York, New Jersey
- River Hills Community Health Center*; Ottumwa, Iowa
- Rural Medical Services, Inc.; Newport, Tennessee
- WellOne Primary Medical & Dental Care; Pascoag, Rhode Island
View the full list of winners.
*Indicates the health center is a member of NACHC.