A Heart Foundation pilot program that recalls at-risk Australians via a text message from their GP clinic, is being seen as a potential lifesaver.
The Heart Health Check (HHC) Recall pilot study was rolled out in more than 200 GP clinics across the country, where about 42,000 at-risk Australian patients received an invitation from their GP to come in for a HHC via SMS which led to a 14-fold increase in HHCs compared to control practices.
Results were recently published in the Australian Journal of General Practice.
The pilot is the largest targeted cardiovascular disease (CVD) screening trial of its kind in Australian general practice, potentially paving the way for a structured Australian CVD screening program in the future.
Heart Foundation Healthcare Programs Manager Natalie Raffoul said “this is the most robust Australian evidence we have that shows a targeted CVD screening program could be both effective and feasible in general practice.”
“Just like Australia has dedicated screening programs for many cancers, we need to consider one for Australia’s leading cause of death, heart disease.”
Heart Health Check (HHC) Recall pilot
The pilot program sent direct SMS messages from GP clinics to existing patients, via the GoShare Plus software, embedded into established clinical practice software via a randomised control trial design.
Patients who were invited to come in for a HHC via a personalised SMS met the following criteria;
- Aged 45 to 74 years of age
- Not already living with CVD
- Had not had a health assessment or HHC in the previous 12 months
- Total cholesterol and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol recorded in the previous 12 months
- An active patient (at least three visits to the GP in the previous two years)
Patients have avoided life-threatening events
New South Wales GP, Dr Raya Grishina-Gunn said the pilot program allowed her to treat patients at high risk of having a heart attack or CVD event, unbeknown to them.
“Thanks to the HHC Recall pilot program, I identified several high-risk patients after conducting their Heart Health Checks,” Dr Raya said.
