Abstract FR454: Lower the Pressure (LTP) initiative enhances blood pressure control quality improvement efforts in under-invested areas of New York State.

Lower the Pressure (LTP) leverages Target:BP TM , a quality improvement initiative developed by the American Heart Association and the American Medical Association to address uncontrolled hypertension in the United States. Target:BP supports healthcare organizations in implementing evidence-based clinical protocols, promoting self-measured blood pressure (SMBP) monitoring, and enhancing provider education to improve hypertension control. LTP enhances Target:BP in under-invested areas in New York State (NYS) by increasing access to blood pressure (BP) monitoring devices and providing educational resources and tailored physician-led training and technical assistance to enrolled clinics. We hypothesize that equipment and targeted support provided through LTP facilitates enrollment and continued engagement in Target:BP. From 2022-2023, LTP enrolled sites and identified areas of focus in collaboration with sites. A core aspect of LTP is that a physician provides participating clinics with tailored technical assistance and specialized training on accurate BP measurement and using validated BP devices. Additional LTP components included: 1) providing at-home, automated office blood pressure (AOBP) and ambulatory blood pressure (AMBP) monitors; 2) hosting larger cohort meetings for group discussion and guest presentations; 3) offering CME course credit; 4) program materials (i.e. water bottles, English and Spanish patient education kits, brochures and cookbooks) and; 5) a small stipend. Of 120 sites enrolled (Image 1), 76% were affiliated with one of 13 health systems and the remaining 29 sites were single-site practices; 67% were federally-qualified health centers (FQHCs) and 22% were in rural areas. All sites focused on establishing or improving SMBP programs; about 25% also focused on standardizing processes to increase BP measurement accuracy policies, and 20 sites focused on adopting a validated blood pressure device policy. LTP distributed 7,000 sets of program materials, 12,000 at-home BP cuffs, 90 AOBP and 7 AMBP monitors. In the year prior to LTP launch, 56% of sites had joined and submitted Target:BP data; by 2023, all sites had joined and submitted data. LTP program outreach increased enrollment of NYS FQHCs and rural sites in Target:BP, increasing access to quality improvement tools and resources. Physician-led training and technical assistance, BP monitors and patient and provider education materials enhanced Target:BP resources in areas of highest need.