JHUSON researcher Jerilyn K. Allen, ScD, RN is heading a five-year $2.5 million study of a team- and community-based health care delivery system designed to manage the total cardiovascular health of 500 high-risk patients.
The investigation incorporates the skills of a three-person team?a physician, a nurse practitioner, and a community health worker. The team is managing the health care of study participants recruited from clinics operated by Baltimore Medical System (BMS), a non-profit community health center system providing care to 35,000 medically underserved people in Baltimore?s poorest areas.
Half of the study patients will receive care from the team, and half will receive a more traditional form of treatment. ?The reality is that very few patients have only one risk factor, and they need a more comprehensive approach to prevent the progression of cardiovascular diseases,? says Allen. ?We?re bringing together the best of three types of care providers to improve outcomes in urban clinics and underserved populations.?