Browsing by Author "Schmelz, Andrew N."

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    Group education program for hypertension control
    (Wiley, 2020-11) Meredith, Ashley H.; Schmelz, Andrew N.; Dawkins, Emily; Carter, Amy; Medicine, School of Medicine
    Hypertension continues to be a health crisis, with multiple approaches attempting to define best practices for management. The objective of our hypertension group education program is to improve patient health outcomes through engaging a multidisciplinary health professional team. A 6-hour group curriculum was created with a focus on nutrition, lifestyle, and medication approaches to hypertension management, while incorporating personally identified behavior change goals and barriers. Outcomes were tracked pre-program, at program completion, and 6 and 12 months post-program completion. Program participants demonstrated immediate and sustained improvements in blood pressure readings and attainment of personal behavior change goals. Group hypertension education classes are an effective way to care for patients. Additional healthcare resources should be dedicated to creating and evaluating educational delivery models that are sustainable and provide results over time, including financial implications to the health system.