Conclusions Organisational and professional interventions improved prescribing of statins/lipid-lowering agents and target blood pressure in patients with IHDs but there was little evidence of change in other outcomes .
Objectives Ischaemic heart diseases ( IHDs ) are a leading cause of death worldwide .
Although prescribing according to guidelines improves health outcomes , it remains suboptimal .
We determined whether interventions targeted at healthcare professionals are effective to enhance prescribing and health outcomes in patients with IHDs .
A pharmacist-led follow-up program for patients with established coronary heart disease in North Norway – a randomized controlled trial
Objectives : The aim of the study was twofold ; 1 ) to develop a clinical pharmacist-led 12 month lasting follow-up program for patients with established coronary heart disease ( CHD ) discharged from the University Hospital of North Norway , and 2 ) to explore the impact of the program with regards to adherence to a medication assessment tool for secondary prevention of CHD and change in biomedical risk factors . Methods : A total of 102 patients aged 18 - 82 years were enrolled in a non-blinded r and omized controlled trial with an intervention group and a control group . The intervention comprised medication reconciliation , medication review and patient education during three meetings ; at discharge , after three months and after twelve months . The control group received st and ard care from their general practitioner . Primary outcomes were adherence to clinical guideline recommendations concerning prescription , therapy goal achievement and lifestyle education  defined in the medication assessment tool for secondary prevention of CHD ( MAT-CHDSP ) . Secondary outcomes included changes in the biomedical risk factors cholesterol , blood pressure and blood glucose . Results : Ninety-four patients completed the trial , 48 intervention group patients and 46 controls . Appropriate prescribing was high , but therapy goal achievement was low in both groups . Overall adherence to MAT-CHDSP criteria increased in both groups and was significantly higher in the intervention group at study end , 78.4 % vs. 62.0 % , p<0.001 . The difference was statistically significant for the documented lifestyle advices in intervention group patients . No significant improvements in biomedical risk factors were observed in favor of the intervention group . Conclusions : The study showed an increased guideline adherence in both study groups . This indicates that attention to clinical practice guideline recommendations in itself increases adherence – which may be a clinical pharmacist task . A larger adequately powered study is needed to show a significant difference in biomedical risk factor improvements in favor of the intervention . Amendments to the follow-up program are suggested before implementation in st and ard patient care can be recommended
Conclusions Organisational and professional interventions improved prescribing of statins/lipid-lowering agents and target blood pressure in patients with IHDs but there was little evidence of change in other outcomes .
Objectives Ischaemic heart diseases ( IHDs ) are a leading cause of death worldwide .
Although prescribing according to guidelines improves health outcomes , it remains suboptimal .
We determined whether interventions targeted at healthcare professionals are effective to enhance prescribing and health outcomes in patients with IHDs .