- Email: [email protected]
A packaged secondary prevention program outside primary care
596
Letters to the Editor
The authors of this manuscript have certified that they comply with the Principles of Ethical Publishing in the International Journal of Cardiology. [4] References [1] Vicenzi MN, Meislitzer T, Heitzinger B, Halaj M, Fleisher LA, Metzler H. Coronary artery stenting and non-cardiac surgery–a prospective outcome study. Br J Anaesth 2006;96(6):686–93.
[2] Iakovou I, Schmidt T, Bonizzoni E, et al. Incidence, predictors, and outcome of thrombosis after successful implantation of drug-eluting stents. JAMA 2005;293 (17):2126–30. [3] Grines CL, Bonow RO, Casey Jr DE, et al. Prevention of premature discontinuation of dual antiplatelet therapy in patients with coronary artery stents: a science advisory from the American Heart Association, American College of Cardiology, Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions, American College of Surgeons, and American Dental Association, with representation from the American College of Physicians. J Am Coll Cardiol 2007;49(6):734–9. [4] Coats AJ. Ethical authorship and publishing. Int J Cardiol 2009;131:149–50.
0167-5273/$ – see front matter © 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.ijcard.2010.06.011
A packaged secondary prevention program outside primary care Umberto Boffa a,⁎, Priya Palkar a, Sonia Danielewski a, Gemma Cosgriff a, Paul Gloury a, Roslyn Orchard a, Christine Wong a, Margarite Vale b a b
Bupa Australia Group, 600 Glenferrie Road, Hawthorn, VIC 3122, Australia The University of Melbourne, Director, The COACH Program, 1/21 Fairholm Grove Camberwell VIC 3124, Australia
a r t i c l e
i n f o
Article history: Received 1 June 2010 Accepted 4 June 2010 Available online 3 July 2010 Keywords: COACH Bupa
Redfern's paper vindicates the decision by third party payers such as Bupa Australia to proactively manage our customer's risk factors alongside their usual care. Our decision to engage COACH® to improve secondary prevention among customers immediately following acute coronary syndrome pre-dates this paper, but our experience also vindicates that decision. The authors of this letter have certified that they comply with the Principles of Ethical Publishing in the International Journal of Cardiology [5]. References
To the Editor We note the important findings of Redfern et al., [1] who conclude that acute coronary syndrome survivors receiving frequent medical follow-up without packaged secondary prevention had no improvement in multiple risk factors over 12 months and that usual care is not delivering effective secondary prevention in the ‘real world’. Bupa Australia suspected this may have been the case in our own insured customers when on 24 January 2008; we commenced recruiting into a telephoned based secondary prevention program called The COACH® (Coaching patients On Achieving Cardiovascular Health) Program [2–4]. We have now graduated over 1000 customers through this six to nine month program delivered by 4 in-house accredited dieticians. Recruitment is typically members who have suffered a cardiac event or stroke and usually within three weeks of the event [5]. Results for those customers with acute cardiovascular admissions showed a substantial reduction in all risk factors to targets set by the National Heart Foundation.
⁎ Corresponding author. E-mail address: [email protected] (U. Boffa).
0167-5273/$ – see front matter © 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.ijcard.2010.06.013
[1] Redfern J, Menzies M, Briffa T, Freedman SB. Impact of medical consultation frequency on modifiable risk factors and medications at 12 months after acute coronary syndrome in the CHOICE randomised controlled trial. Int J Cardiol 2010;145(3):481–6 (this issue). [2] Vale MJ, Jelinek MV, Best JD, Santamaria JD. Coaching patients with coronary heart disease to achieve the target cholesterol: a method to bridge the gap between evidence-based medicine and the ‘real world’. Randomized controlled trial. J Clin Epidemiol 2002;55:245–52. [3] Vale MJ, Jelinek MV, Best JD, et al. Coaching patients on achieving cardiovascular health (COACH); a multicenter randomized trial in patients with coronary heart disease. Arch Intern Med 2003;163:2775–83. [4] Jelinek M, Vale MJ, Liew D, et al. The COACH Program produces sustained improvements in cardiovascular risk factors and adherence to recommended medications—2 year follow-up. Heart Lung Circ 2009;18(6):388–92. [5] Coats AJ. Ethical authorship and publishing. Int J Cardiol 2009;131:149–50.
Letters to the Editor
The authors of this manuscript have certified that they comply with the Principles of Ethical Publishing in the International Journal of Cardiology. [4] References [1] Vicenzi MN, Meislitzer T, Heitzinger B, Halaj M, Fleisher LA, Metzler H. Coronary artery stenting and non-cardiac surgery–a prospective outcome study. Br J Anaesth 2006;96(6):686–93.
[2] Iakovou I, Schmidt T, Bonizzoni E, et al. Incidence, predictors, and outcome of thrombosis after successful implantation of drug-eluting stents. JAMA 2005;293 (17):2126–30. [3] Grines CL, Bonow RO, Casey Jr DE, et al. Prevention of premature discontinuation of dual antiplatelet therapy in patients with coronary artery stents: a science advisory from the American Heart Association, American College of Cardiology, Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions, American College of Surgeons, and American Dental Association, with representation from the American College of Physicians. J Am Coll Cardiol 2007;49(6):734–9. [4] Coats AJ. Ethical authorship and publishing. Int J Cardiol 2009;131:149–50.
0167-5273/$ – see front matter © 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.ijcard.2010.06.011
A packaged secondary prevention program outside primary care Umberto Boffa a,⁎, Priya Palkar a, Sonia Danielewski a, Gemma Cosgriff a, Paul Gloury a, Roslyn Orchard a, Christine Wong a, Margarite Vale b a b
Bupa Australia Group, 600 Glenferrie Road, Hawthorn, VIC 3122, Australia The University of Melbourne, Director, The COACH Program, 1/21 Fairholm Grove Camberwell VIC 3124, Australia
a r t i c l e
i n f o
Article history: Received 1 June 2010 Accepted 4 June 2010 Available online 3 July 2010 Keywords: COACH Bupa
Redfern's paper vindicates the decision by third party payers such as Bupa Australia to proactively manage our customer's risk factors alongside their usual care. Our decision to engage COACH® to improve secondary prevention among customers immediately following acute coronary syndrome pre-dates this paper, but our experience also vindicates that decision. The authors of this letter have certified that they comply with the Principles of Ethical Publishing in the International Journal of Cardiology [5]. References
To the Editor We note the important findings of Redfern et al., [1] who conclude that acute coronary syndrome survivors receiving frequent medical follow-up without packaged secondary prevention had no improvement in multiple risk factors over 12 months and that usual care is not delivering effective secondary prevention in the ‘real world’. Bupa Australia suspected this may have been the case in our own insured customers when on 24 January 2008; we commenced recruiting into a telephoned based secondary prevention program called The COACH® (Coaching patients On Achieving Cardiovascular Health) Program [2–4]. We have now graduated over 1000 customers through this six to nine month program delivered by 4 in-house accredited dieticians. Recruitment is typically members who have suffered a cardiac event or stroke and usually within three weeks of the event [5]. Results for those customers with acute cardiovascular admissions showed a substantial reduction in all risk factors to targets set by the National Heart Foundation.
⁎ Corresponding author. E-mail address: [email protected] (U. Boffa).
0167-5273/$ – see front matter © 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.ijcard.2010.06.013
[1] Redfern J, Menzies M, Briffa T, Freedman SB. Impact of medical consultation frequency on modifiable risk factors and medications at 12 months after acute coronary syndrome in the CHOICE randomised controlled trial. Int J Cardiol 2010;145(3):481–6 (this issue). [2] Vale MJ, Jelinek MV, Best JD, Santamaria JD. Coaching patients with coronary heart disease to achieve the target cholesterol: a method to bridge the gap between evidence-based medicine and the ‘real world’. Randomized controlled trial. J Clin Epidemiol 2002;55:245–52. [3] Vale MJ, Jelinek MV, Best JD, et al. Coaching patients on achieving cardiovascular health (COACH); a multicenter randomized trial in patients with coronary heart disease. Arch Intern Med 2003;163:2775–83. [4] Jelinek M, Vale MJ, Liew D, et al. The COACH Program produces sustained improvements in cardiovascular risk factors and adherence to recommended medications—2 year follow-up. Heart Lung Circ 2009;18(6):388–92. [5] Coats AJ. Ethical authorship and publishing. Int J Cardiol 2009;131:149–50.