Journal
CIRCULATION
Volume 132, Issue 2, Pages 93-100Publisher
LIPPINCOTT WILLIAMS & WILKINS
DOI: 10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.115.015464
Keywords
delivery of health care; hypertension; outcome assessment (health care); pharmacists
Funding
- Canadian Institutes of Health Research
- Alberta Innovates-Health Solutions
- Merck
- Canadian Foundation for Pharmacy
- Cardiovascular Health and Stroke Strategic Clinical Network of Alberta Health Services
- ManthaMed
- Interdisciplinary Chronic Disease Collaboration - Alberta Innovates-Health Solutions
- Hypertension Canada
- University of Alberta Chair in Cardiovascular Outcomes Research
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Background-Hypertension control rates remain suboptimal. Pharmacists' scope of practice is evolving, and their position in the community may be ideal for improving hypertension care. We aimed to study the impact of pharmacist prescribing on blood pressure (BP) control in community-dwelling patients. Methods and Results-We designed a patient-level, randomized, controlled trial, enrolling adults with above-target BP (as defined by Canadian guidelines) through community pharmacies, hospitals, or primary care teams in 23 communities in Alberta. Intervention group patients received an assessment of BP and cardiovascular risk, education on hypertension, prescribing of antihypertensive medications, laboratory monitoring, and monthly follow-up visits for 6 months (all by their pharmacist). Control group patients received a wallet card for BP recording, written hypertension information, and usual care from their pharmacist and physician. Primary outcome was the change in systolic BP at 6 months. A total of 248 patients (mean age, 64 years; 49% male) were enrolled. Baseline mean +/- SD systolic/diastolic BP was 150 +/- 14/84 +/- 11 mm Hg. The intervention group had a mean +/- SE reduction in systolic BP at 6 months of 18.3 +/- 1.2 compared with 11.8 +/- 1.9 mm Hg in the control group, an adjusted difference of 6.6 +/- 1.9 mm Hg (P=0.0006). The adjusted odds of patients achieving BP targets was 2.32 (95% confidence interval, 1.17-4.15 in favor of the intervention). Conclusions-Pharmacist prescribing for patients with hypertension resulted in a clinically important and statistically significant reduction in BP. Policy makers should consider an expanded role for pharmacists, including prescribing, to address the burden of hypertension.
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