A New Approach to Health Nation’s Leading Preventative Health Groups Seek To Save Lives
he American College of Preventive Medicine (ACPM) and Partnership for Prevention have joined forces to change the way Americans approach their health, from costly disease treatment to cost-effective disease prevention.
The organizations have targeted heart disease, the nation’s number-one killer, with a number of initiatives, including the announcement of a new project designed to increase doctor-patient discussions about the role of aspirin in reducing the risk of cardiovascular events, such as heart attack and stroke.
“Heart disease will cost America about $450 billion this year,” said Dr. Mike Parkinson, president of the ACPM. “Heart disease is preventable, and there are very important steps people can take — but aren’t taking — to prevent heart disease from occurring in the first place, like improved diet, exercise, and stopping smoking. One inexpensive but effective way of reducing the risk of heart attack for people at increased risk is to take a doctor-recommended low-dose aspirin, but studies show aspirin is underutilized by people who would benefit.”
The initiative, which targets both consumers and health care professionals, includes the announcement of a pilot study to test the effectiveness of professional and patient tools designed to promote better dialogue about the role of aspirin in reducing the risk of cardiovascular events, ultimately resulting in improved health through the broader, appropriate use of aspirin.
“Our goal is to reach both patients and health care providers with important information about the easiest and most cost-effective ways to prevent heart disease and to facilitate dialogue about the importance of aspirin in preventing cardiovascular events,” noted Dr. Eduardo Sanchez, former commissioner of the Texas Department of State Health Services, director of the Institute for Health Policy at the University of Texas School of Public Health, and chair of Partnership’s National Commission on Prevention Priorities. “Our hope is that the aspirin therapy education program can be a model for how to improve the uptake of other preventive services.”
The Role of Aspirin
The organizations’ efforts are a response to several recent reports suggesting that better use of preventive strategies could save thousands of lives each year.
An August 2007 report by Partnership calculated that 45,000 lives would be saved each year if more adults took a low-dose aspirin to prevent cardiovascular events. The report, “Preventive Care: A National Profile on Use, Disparities, and Health Benefits,” was funded by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and the WellPoint Foundation. It reaffirms a prior partnership report that rated aspirin counseling as among the highest-value preventive health services that, if optimized, would dramatically contribute to improved public health.
“The data are extraordinary,” observed Dr. Sanchez. “If more people at risk for heart attack were on a simple and inexpensive doctor-recommended aspirin regimen, fewer people would die from heart disease. Period.”
Underutilization of aspirin is a significant public health concern. According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in 2005 only 40{06cf2b9696b159f874511d23dbc893eb1ac83014175ed30550cfff22781411e5} of men 40 years and older and women 50 years and older were using aspirin on a daily basis.
A recent ACPM report published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine also reported underutilization of aspirin. In addition, the report showed that the factor most strongly associated with aspirin use was a conversation about aspirin with a health care provider; aspirin use was 88{06cf2b9696b159f874511d23dbc893eb1ac83014175ed30550cfff22781411e5} among respondents reporting such a discussion, compared to 17{06cf2b9696b159f874511d23dbc893eb1ac83014175ed30550cfff22781411e5} for those who did not report a discussion.
The report, which was based on a nationwide online survey of 1,299 adults ages 40 and older, revealed that aspirin is greatly underutilized, with 43{06cf2b9696b159f874511d23dbc893eb1ac83014175ed30550cfff22781411e5} of increased-risk respondents saying they do not take aspirin regularly.
“There is a clear correlation between having a conversation with a health care provider about the role of aspirin in preventing cardiovascular events and actually using aspirin to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke,” said Parkinson. “The efforts by ACPM and Partnership aim to promote awareness and dialogue between patients and their health care providers about cardiovascular prevention strategies, including healthy behaviors and the potential role of aspirin therapy.”
The American College of Preventive Medicine is the national professional society for physicians committed to disease prevention and health promotion. ACPM seeks to improve population health status through evidence-based disease prevention and health promotion research, policies, practices, and programs; www.acpm.org.
Partnership for Prevention is a nationally recognized nonprofit membership organization made up of organizations dedicated to advancing policies and practices to prevent disease and improve the health of all Americans. Members include medical and public health organizations, businesses, government agencies, and academic institutions; www.prevent.org.