AHRQ’s EvidenceNOW Initiative Estimates Heart Health Needs in Primary Care

AHRQ’s EvidenceNow, an initiative that supports smaller primary care practices’ efforts to improve heart health, has found that participating practices regularly provide evidence-based care while recognizing the potential to improve on one or more of the heart health clinical services known as the ABCS: Aspirin use for high-risk individuals, Blood pressure control, Cholesterol management, and Smoking cessation counseling. EvidenceNOW provides support services typically not available to smaller primary care practices to help them improve the care they deliver. Baseline data from more than 1,000 primary care practices participating in EvidenceNOW indicate that while an average of more than 50 percent of patients are receiving each of the ABCS services, many practices have not yet reached the EvidenceNOW goal of 70 percent. Access an EvidenceNow infographic for details, plus a new AHRQ Views blog post by the Agency’s Chief Medical Officer, David Meyers, M.D.

Heart Health Care Before EvidenceNOW

The ABCS of heart health—Aspirin use for high-risk individuals, Blood pressure control, Cholesterol management, and Smoking cessation—are four evidence-based cardiovascular care services proven to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke.

Smaller primary care practices regularly provide heart health care to their patients, but recognize the potential to improve on one or more of the ABCS. EvidenceNOW provides support services typically not available to smaller primary care practices to help them improve the care they provide. Below is an overview of how primary care practices were doing with delivering the ABCS to patients before participating in EvidenceNOW, based on data submitted as of January 2017.

Follow EvidenceNOW as we learn how support services can help smaller practices improve heart health for patients across the United States.

AHRQ’s EvidenceNOW: Setting the Target for Improving Heart Health in America. AHRQ’s EvidenceNOW, a Federal grant initiative, funds seven regional cooperatives to help more than 1,500 smaller primary care practices and 5,000 clinicians build their capacity to improve heart health for the 8 million patients they serve. Heart disease is the number one cause of death in the United States. Delivery of the ABCS of heart health, four evidence-based cardiovascular care services, is proven to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke. Smaller primary care practices regularly provide excellent health care to their patients, but recognize the potential to do even better. The following data show the percentage of patients receiving ABCS services from practices participating in EvidenceNOW at baseline, as of January 2017. For people with known heart disease, 65 percent are prescribed daily aspirin to prevent heart attack and stroke; this data comes from 142,135 patients. For people with high blood pressure, 62 percent are successfully managing it through diet, exercise, and when needed, medications; this data comes from 721,762 patients. For people at high risk of heart disease, 57 percent are prescribed a statin medication to manage their cholesterol; this data comes from 186,250 patients. For people who smoke or use tobacco, 63 percent are provided counseling and medication to help them quit; this data comes from 830,302 patients.

Some practices participating in EvidenceNOW are already near or exceeding the 70 percent goal for one or more of the ABCS, but still have room to improve. Other practices have further to go. Baseline data as of January 2017 from between 606 and 1022 practices show wide variation in the percentage of patients practices are delivering the ABCS to, meaning the percentage of patients at risk for cardiovascular disease who are using aspirin, have their blood pressure controlled, are prescribed a statin, or are receiving smoking cessation support.

Each EvidenceNOW cooperative is providing quality improvement support services, typically not available to smaller practices because of their size, to help primary care practices improve the care they provide. These services include onsite practice facilitation and coaching, data feedback and benchmarking, health IT support, expert consultation, and shared learning collaboratives. Follow EvidenceNOW as we learn how these services can help smaller primary care practices improve heart health for patients across the United States. Visit: www.ahrq.gov/EvidenceNOW. Data courtesy of ESCALATES, the EvidenceNOW independent national evaluator under AHRQ grant number R01HS023940-01. For more information about the national evaluation, visit: www.escalates.org.

AHRQ's EvidenceNOW: Setting the Target for Improving Heart Health in America (PDF, 1.2 MB)

Page last reviewed February 2017
Page originally created October 2016

Internet Citation: Heart Health Care Before EvidenceNOW. Content last reviewed February 2017. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. http://www.ahrq.gov/evidencenow/evaluation/before-evidencenow.html