By Robert Andre Emmanuel
The Ministry of Health, with the support of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), has launched a three-day training workshop to help health officials and healthcare workers improve hypertension management and cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention.
An opening ceremony for the workshop was held at the UWI Five Islands Campus yesterday with the full programme ending on September 20.
The HEARTS in the Americas initiative is the regional adaptation of the World Health Organization’s Global Hearts program.
The workshop will train healthcare providers on the HEARTS clinical pathway, including guidance on medication protocols, team-based care, and patient monitoring.
Dr Donald DiPette, a key figure in the initiative, explained its purpose: “It’s a critical strategy to increase hypertension control rates in countries of all levels of income.”
Statistics presented by Gloria Giraldo, advisor for NCDs and mental health at the Pan American Health Organization, highlight the need for such an initiative, shared Giraldo, who further stated that, “One out of three adults in the Americas has hypertension; however, 65 percent remain uncontrolled.”
The initiative focuses on standardizing hypertension treatment protocols.
Dr Kenneth Connell, a HEARTS consultant, emphasized the importance of this standardized, team-based approach.
“Everyone needs to be singing off of the same hymn sheet. The message has to be so consistent and repetitive that even the security guard is involved.”
He added that “champions” would be needed in society to help support and encourage controlling non-communicable diseases.
The program includes several components, as Dr DiPette outlined: “HEARTS started with five modules, the very first being evidence-based practice and protocols.”
The initiative has shown promising results in other countries Dr DiPette continued, “We have that data absolutely rock solid from our colleagues at Kaiser Permanente in California, 85% control rates with a couple of percent variability across all demographic groups and ages and sexes.”
Currently, 33 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean have committed to integrating this program across their primary healthcare networks over the next few years.
The initiative is said to not only improve hypertension control, but also strengthen the overall primary healthcare system in the country.
