Cardiovascular Intervention Improvement Telemedicine Study

Anticipated Impacts on Veteran's Healthcare: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death in the U.S.; more than 80% of veterans have > 2 risk factors for CVD. An intervention that addresses multiple CVD risk factors among high-risk veterans has the greatest potential to improve morbidity and mortality.

Project Background/Rationale: The proposed study will take place in two VA primary care clinics (1-Community-Based Outpatient Clinics and 1-primary care clinic affiliated with a hospital). We will improve CVD risk among veterans by addressing the modifiable risk factors of systolic blood pressure (SBP), smoking, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C). The intervention will be tailored to the needs of vulnerable high risk patients (e.g. African Americans, low literate) and integrated into clinics, thereby enhancing the potential for benefit and generalizability to other settings.

The proposed study could significantly improve CVD risk management among veterans for several reasons: 1) This intervention is a novel extension of our previous efficacious interventions, but provides a novel extension to address multiple chronic conditions contributing to CVD risk. 2) The intervention focuses on both multiple CVD-related behaviors and medication management. 3) The intervention was developed to ensure implementation across a large and representative sample of veterans; and; 4) The intervention, if found efficacious and financially self-sustaining, could be widely implemented within the VA healthcare system.

Project Objectives: The proposed study will examine two research questions:

• Can patients randomized to a clinical pharmacist-administered telephone behavioral/ medication management intervention tailored to their needs improve CVD outcomes relative to a control group over 12 months? Primary Hypothesis: (H1) Veterans who receive the behavioral/medication intervention will have greater improvement of their CVD Risk Profile over the 12 months of follow-up as compared to the control group.

Secondary Hypotheses: (H2) Veterans who receive the intervention will have improved medication adherence, physical activity, improved diet, lower body mass index as compared to the control group over 12 months of follow-up. (H3) Veterans who receive the intervention will have greater improvements in LDL over the 12 months of follow-up as compared to the control group. (H4) Veterans with diabetes who receive the intervention will have greater improved HbA1c as compared to the control group over 12 months of follow-up.

• If the intervention is found to be effective, is it cost effective? Project Methods: To address these hypotheses, we propose a two-arm randomized clinical trial design in which 500 patients with cardiovascular disease will be randomized to either the education control group or the intervention group. Patients randomized to the intervention group will receive a clinical pharmacist-administered intervention, which focuses on behavioral and a medication management. The intervention will occur over 12 months. Patients randomized to the control group will receive educational material about CVD reduction. Given the national prevalence of CVD and the dismal rates of risk factor control, intensive, but easily disseminated interventions such as the one proposed could significantly improve treatment of this epidemic in the VA.

Inclusion criteria

• Enrolled in one of three Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center (DVAMC) Primary Care Clinics affiliated with the hospital or the Raleigh Community-Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC) for at least one year;
• At least one visit to a primary care physician (PCP) at the Raleigh CBOC or Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC) associated primary care clinics in the previous 12 months;
• Outpatient diagnostic code for hypertension and/or hypercholesterolemia and lab values indicating either poorly controlled BP levels (>150/90 Hg) AND/OR LDL (>130mg/dl) in the previous year.

Exclusion criteria

• diagnosed with metastatic cancer,
• diagnosed with dementia,
• active diagnosis of psychosis,
• treated with dialysis,
• most recent creatinine lab level >2.5 or no creatinine lab value within past year
• hospitalized for a stroke, heart attack, or had surgery for blocked arteries in the past 3 months,
• participating in another interventional trial,
• not currently receiving care at the Durham VAMC or the Raleigh CBOC
• resident of a nursing home,
• hard time seeing type/printing on books, magazines articles, etc.
• hard time hearing on the telephone
• limited/no access to telephone
• plans to move medical care from DVAMC or Raleigh CBOC in next 12 months
• CVD care is currently being managed by a clinical pharmacist
• HbA1C value in the last 90day > 10% and patient is currently not on an insulin regimen.