A ED-based Intervention to Improve Antihypertensive Adherence

More than 37 million Americans have uncontrolled hypertension, with associated costs of $93.5 billion in 2010. Emergency department visits for hypertension rose 25% from 2006 to 2011. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, "improved hypertension control…require\[s\] an expanded effort and an increased focus on blood pressure from health-care systems, clinicians, and individuals." ED visits among patients with uncontrolled blood pressure are often missed opportunities for the ED to serve as an additional healthcare touchpoint and opportunity to impact chronic disease control by complementing chronic care. The ED is a common access point into the healthcare system, with more than 120 million visits annually among 20% of Americans. ED visits specifically for hypertension are also common, with more than 5 million visits per year and rising rapidly as more newly insured and chronically ill patients seek ED care. Elevated blood pressure (BP) is noted in 15-25% of all ED visits and cannot be attributed solely to pain. An ED-based intervention places focus on patients who are at increased risk for poor clinical outcomes and who are likely to gain benefit from interventions. Medication adherence, or taking medications as prescribed, is crucial for BP control. Until now, measuring antihypertensive adherence in the ED has been limited to self-report, which is influenced by recall and social desirability biases and lack of an established patient-provider relationship. As a result, little is known regarding factors related to antihypertensive adherence or optimal interventions to improve adherence among ED patients. This project utilizes a validated mass spectrometry plasma assay as a measure of antihypertensive adherence to overcome these limitations. This tool will be combined with a conceptual framework in order to test our understanding of how adherence relates to blood pressure control among ED patients. The conceptual framework is based on work by Krousel-Wood, Bosworth, Murray, and Gellad and is grounded in the Information-Motivation-Behavioral Skills model of health behavior change, Social Cognitive Theory, and successful clinic-based adherence interventions.