St. Joseph’s Health is Nationally Recognized for Efforts to Reduce Number of Patients with Uncontrolled Blood Pressure

The American Heart Association and American Medical Association presented the Target: BP Gold+ Award for commitment to prioritizing blood pressure control

SYRACUSE, N.Y.— St. Joseph’s Health was the first in Upstate NY to earn national recognition for efforts aimed at reducing heart attacks and strokes in 2018 – and now, it has earned Gold Plus-level recognition.

The American Heart Association and American Medical Association bestowed Gold Plus-level recognition as part of the Target: BP™ initiative onto St. Joseph’s Health, for its commitment to improving blood pressure (BP) control rates. The Gold Plus award recognizes practices that demonstrate a commitment to measurement accuracy and in which high blood pressure is controlled in 70% or more of the affected adult patients.

High blood pressure, or hypertension, is a leading risk factor for heart attacks, strokes, and preventable death in the U.S. There are 121.5 million U.S. adults living with hypertension. This is nearly half of all adults in the country. Unfortunately, less than half of them have their BP under control, making both diagnosis and effective management critical.^[1] In the U.S., heart disease and stroke are the No. 1 and No. 5 causes of death, respectively, and stroke is a leading cause of disability.

“Addressing blood pressure management is key for better cardiovascular health – and critical today, when heart disease and stroke continue to be leading causes of death for adults in the U.S.,” said Dr. Russell Silverman, a cardiologist at St. Joseph’s Health. “High blood pressure is a leading risk factor of heart disease and stroke that can often be prevented if diagnosed early and managed effectively.”

Target: BP is a national collaboration between the American Heart Association and American Medical Association aimed at reducing the number of adults in the U.S. who suffer from heart attacks and strokes each year by urging physician practices, health systems, and patients to prioritize BP control. The initiative aims to help healthcare organizations improve blood pressure control rates using evidence-based protocols and recognizes St. Joseph’s commitment to improving hypertension control.

“By committing to helping more people in Central New York control their blood pressure and reduce their risks for future heart disease and stroke, St. Joseph’s Health is taking a key step to helping more people live longer, healthier lives,” said Howard Haft, M.D., MMM, CPE, FACPE, volunteer expert for the AHA and executive director of the Maryland Primary Care Program, in Baltimore. “St. Joseph’s participation in the Target: BP initiative shows its dedication to turning clinical guidelines into lifelines for patients and their families.”

Learn more at TargetBP.org.

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About St. Joseph’s Health

“St. Joseph’s Health is a non-profit health care system based in Syracuse, NY. St. Joseph’s has been an innovative leader in health care since its founding in 1869 as the first hospital open to the public in the city of Syracuse. Offering primary, specialty, and home care, a Magnet-recognized hospital, and collaboration with community partners, St. Joseph's Health advances the well-being of the communities we serve through an expanding range of services to ensure our patients achieve optimum long-term health. St. Joseph’s is one of America’s 50 Best Hospitals for Cardiac Surgery and one of America’s 100 Best for Spine Surgery and Coronary Intervention according to Healthgrades. It is ranked by Consumer Reports among the top 15 heart surgery centers in the country, a designated Stroke Center, and a U.S. News “Best Regional Hospital.” St. Joseph’s Health is affiliated with St. Joseph’s Physicians and is a member of Trinity Health. For more information, visit www.sjhsyr.org/legacy.”

About Trinity Health

Trinity Health is one of the largest not-for-profit, Catholic healthcare systems in the nation. It is a family of 115,000 colleagues and nearly 26,000 physicians and clinicians caring for diverse communities across 25 states. Nationally recognized for care and experience, the Trinity Health system includes 88 hospitals, 131 continuing care locations, the second largest PACE program in the country, 125 urgent care locations, and many other health and well-being services. Based in Livonia, Michigan, its annual operating revenue is $20.2 billion with $1.2 billion returned to its communities in the form of charity care and other community benefit programs.

About Target: BP^TM

Target: BP is a national collaboration between the American Heart Association and American Medical Association to reduce the number of Americans who experience heart attacks and strokes each year by urging physician practices, health systems, and patients to prioritize hypertension control. The initiative supports healthcare organizations to improve blood pressure control rates through the use of evidence-based protocols, tools, and resources and recognizes organizations for achieving blood pressure control rates within the populations they serve.