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Shannon Walsh(703) 838-0033 ext. 377[email protected]
Newswise — ALEXANDRIA, VA – Today, the American Medical Group Foundation (AMGF) announced that more than 100 organizations are participating in the second Measure Up/Pressure Down® National Day of Action: Roll Up Your Sleeves! event on May 7, 2015. Medical groups, health systems, sponsors, and partners across the nation will take at least one “action” in their local community to raise awareness of high blood pressure to patients, providers, employees, or the general public. Planned activities include free community screenings and counseling, media outreach, patient educational resources, employee brown bag lunches, giveaways, social media campaigns, and more. A complete list of participants and activities is available here.
The Measure Up/Pressure Down® National Day of Action: Roll Up Your Sleeves! is held in conjunction with National High Blood Pressure Education Month, recognized annually in May.
“We are extremely proud of our American Medical Group Association members and many participating community organizations for their commitment to blood pressure control on the National Day of Action and throughout the entire year,” said Donald W. Fisher, Ph.D., CAE, President and Chief Executive Officer of the American Medical Group Association (AMGA) and Secretary of the AMGF Board of Directors. “Having more than 100 organizations join together to improve blood pressure control and patient health demonstrates the importance of this health condition to the entire nation.”
High blood pressure (hypertension) is one of our nation's most significant health issues. An estimated one in three (68 million) Americans have the disease, often referred to as the silent killer. Uncontrolled high blood pressure can lead to heart disease, stroke, heart attack, kidney disease, and other serious health problems.
Led by AMGF, Measure Up/Pressure Down® is a three-year campaign to improve high blood pressure prevention, detection, and control. The campaign mobilizes nearly 150 medical groups and health systems to achieve the goal of having 80 percent of their patients with high blood pressure under control by 2016. To achieve this goal, health systems adopt one or more evidence-based care processes that lead to measureable improvements in outcomes. Collectively, participating groups and systems deliver care to more than 42 million patients.
The campaign also brings together national partners and sponsor organizations to work collectively to provide patients and communities information and tools that facilitate lifestyle changes, medication adherence, and other keys to successful blood pressure control. Partners include the American Heart Association, American Kidney Fund, American Society of Hypertension, American Stroke Association, Association of Black Cardiologists, Institute for Health and Productivity Management, Institute for Healthcare Improvement, Men’s Health Network, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Million Hearts® initiative, Preventive Cardiovascular Nurses Association, Right Care, and WomenHeart. Campaign sponsors that are committed to helping resolve this public health challenge include: Aetna, Baptist Medical Group, Daiichi Sankyo, Inc., Epic, Humedica, Palo Alto Medical Foundation, Ralphs, and Withings.
For more information about the campaign and Measure Up/Pressure Down® National Day of Action: Roll Up Your Sleeves!, visit www.MeasureUpPressureDown.com.
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About the Measure Up/Pressure Down® National Day of Action: Roll Up Your Sleeves!The Measure Up/Pressure Down® National Day of Action: Roll Up Your Sleeves! is an annual event during which campaign supporters join together in their respective communities and participate in at least one “action” to raise awareness of high blood pressure – to patients, providers, employees, or the general public. These actions can take different forms, based on your audience, capabilities, and resources. This year’s participants include: Affinity Medical Group, Allegan County Building Ties, American Diabetes Association, American Heart Association, American Heart Association Mid Atlantic, American Kidney Fund, American Medical Association, American Medical Group Association, American Medical Group Foundation, American Society of Hypertension, Anceta LLC, Arch Health Partners, AtCor Medical, Atrius Health, Austin Regional Clinic, Baptist Medical Group, Baylor Health Care System/HealthTexas Provider Network, Bend Memorial Clinic, Billings Clinic, BlueCare Tennessee, BodyCraft, Brown & Toland Physicians, Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation at Southern New Hampshire Medical Center, Caribbean Cardiac, Carle Physician Group, Colorado Springs Health Partners, DC Fire & EMS, DC Health Link, District of Columbia Department of Health, Dodge Communications, Employer Services, Enduring Hearts, Erie Family Health Center-Helping Hands, Esse Health, Essentia Health, Evans Blount Healthcare, Florida Medical Clinic, Greater Washington Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Group Health Cooperative of South Central Wisconsin, Hager Sharp, Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates, HealthyWomen, Henry Ford Medical Group, Home Health Quality Improvement National Campaign, Innovative Health Solutions, Inova Health System, Inova Medical Group, Intermountain Health, Jefferson Healthcare, Johns Hopkins Center to Eliminate Cardiovascular Health Disparities, Johns Hopkins Medicine Armstrong Institute for Patient Safety and Quality, Maine Center for Disease Control & Prevention, Mayo Health Systems, Measure Up/Pressure Down®, MedStar Family Choice, MedStar Franklin Square Medical Center Department of Family Medicine, Men's Health Network, Mercy Clinics East Division, Million Hearts®, Million Hearts® Delaware, Ministry Medical Group, NEA Baptist Clinic, New West Physicians, Nothing But The Best, Olmsted Medical Center , Premier Medical Associates, Prevea Health, Preventive Cardiovascular Nurses Association, PriMed Physicians, ProHealth Physicians, Providence Hospital Fort Lincoln Family Medicine Center, Quincy Medical Group, Ralphs, Redwood Community Health Coalition, Right Care Initiative, Sacred Heart Hospital Pensacola, Sharp Rees-Stealy Medical Group, Southern New Hampshire Health System, Springfield Clinic, Summit Medical Group, SwedishAmerican Health System, The Everett Clinic, The Polyclinic, ThedaCare Physicians, Tulane University Medical Group, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Region II, United Health Foundation, United Way of Monroe County, Unity Health Care, UnityPoint Clinic, University of Maryland School of Pharmacy's APhA-ASP Operation Heart, University of Utah Healthcare Community Clinics, USMD, VNA Care Network & Hospice, Voices For Health, Watson Clinic, Weill Cornell Physician Organization, Wellmont Medical Associates, WESTMED Medical Group, Withings, WomenHeart: the National Coalition for Women with Heart Disease, WV Bureau for Public Health - Division of Health Promotion and Chronic Disease, Wyoming Department of Health, and YMCA of Metropolitan Washington.
About the Measure Up/Pressure Down® CampaignThe American Medical Group Foundation (AMGF), the nonprofit arm of the American Medical Group Association, launched Measure Up/Pressure Down®, a three-year national campaign to improve care and reduce the burden of high blood pressure on November 29, 2012. Measure Up/Pressure Down® includes nearly 150 medical groups, health systems and national partners such as the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Mayo Clinic, Cleveland Clinic, Kaiser Permanente, and Geisinger Health System. The goal of the three-year campaign is to have 80 percent of high blood pressure patients in control of their condition by 2016. www.measureuppressuredown.com
About AMGFThe American Medical Group Foundation (AMGF) is the 501(c)(3) affiliate of the American Medical Group Association and it supports and disseminates research on better ways to deliver health care that is scientifically sound and value-based. AMGF also develops and supports educational programs to enable all stakeholders-providers, payers, policymakers and patients to translate the evidence of what works best into everyday practice. www.amga.org/foundation
About AMGAThe American Medical Group Association (AMGA) represents some of the nation's largest, most prestigious medical practices, independent practice associations, accountable care organizations, and integrated healthcare delivery systems. AMGA's mission is to support its members in enhancing population health and care for patients through integrated systems of care. More than 170,000 physicians practice in AMGA member organizations, providing healthcare services for 120 million patients (approximately one in three Americans). Headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia, AMGA is the strategic partner for these organizations, providing a comprehensive package of benefits, including political advocacy, educational and networking programs, publications, benchmarking data services, and financial and operations assistance. www.amga.org
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