| The purpose of the practice improvement project was to determine the hypertension management needs of the Family HealthCare (FHC) clinic in Fargo, ND by staff interviews, observation, and data review as well as to develop a hypertension management program to meet those needs. The clinic's needs and barriers regarding hypertension patients were identified and addressed in the newly proposed hypertension management program.;FHC did not have a structured hypertension management program. The main barriers identified included poor patient follow-up, limited patient educational materials on hypertension, and ineffective patient flow. The program was developed based on the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Health Resources and Services Administration's hypertension control program. Items addressed in the program were correct blood-pressure taking techniques, evidence-based guidelines regarding patients with hypertension, hypertension tools for providers, education for providers and patients, and follow-up recommendations.;The hypertension management program is to be managed by a quality improvement (QI) team that consists of providers, nurses, pharmacists, dietitians, health coaches, receptionists, and schedulers. The QI team will be responsible for evaluating the progress of the program using FHC's Uniform Data Set report. The goal is to increase hypertension control (patients with a blood pressure of less than 140/90) to 70%. The hypertension program and recommendations were presented to the clinic director Dr. Espejo. The goal was for FHC staff members to recognize the benefits of the hypertension management program and for them to decide to try to implement the program at their facility. |
