Science from the Quality of Care and Outcomes Research in Cardiovascular Disease and Stroke Conference 2008

Letter from the Chariman | Conference Highlights | Get with the Guidelines Posters | News Releases

Welcome Letter from John S. Rumsfeld, MD, PhD, Chair of the Program Committee

On behalf of the Planning Committee, a warm welcome to the faculty and participants of the AHA Quality of Care and Outcomes Research in Cardiovascular Disease and Stroke Conference. The conference, now in its ninth year, has grown in parallel with the ever-increasing national and international attention on the quality of healthcare. Conference faculty and participants engage in the presentation of cutting-edge research, interactive workshops, and “state of the science” learning sessions -- all aimed at advancing our knowledge of how to improve the quality of care delivery and outcomes of patients with cardiovascular disease and stroke. This conference now stands as the pre-eminent gathering of multi-disciplinary cardiovascular clinicians, trainees, and researchers who are dedicated to making healthcare more effective, efficient, equitable, timely, safe, and patient-centered.

Thank you for your participation in the conference, and we look forward to seeing you next year at the tenth AHA Quality of Care and Outcomes Research in Cardiovascular Disease and Stroke Conference, to be held in Washington D.C., April 22-24, 2009.

A few highlights of the conference this year include:

Keynote speaker and award-winner for outstanding achievement in quality of care and outcomes research: Building a Successful U.S. Healthcare System: What can you do? Robert H. Brook, MD Presentation Slides

Innovation in Quality with a Business Perspective
Moderator	Henry Ting, MD - Presentation Slides
Faculty	Thomas H. Lee, MD - Presentation Slides David B. Pryor, MD
Systems of Care for Acute MI
Moderator	Alice Jacobs, MD - Presentation Slides
Faculty	Christopher B. Granger, MD - Presentation Slides James G. Jollis, MD - Presentation Slides Ivan Rokos, MD - Presentation Slides
Comparative Effectiveness – Friend or For to Health Care
Moderator	Rita F. Redberg, MD
Faculty	Carolyn M. Clancy, MD - Presentation Slides Ezekiel J. Emanuel, MD - Presentation Slides Gail R. Wilensky, PhD - Presentation Slides
Organizing and Measuring Stroke Care Across Large Healthcare Environments: Experiences at the State Level and within the Veterans Administration
Moderators	Eric E. Smith, MD Ann Watt, MBA
Faculty	Dawn Bravata, MD - Presentation Slides Larry B. Goldstein, MD - Presentation Slides Linda Williams, MD - Presentation Slides
The Future of Performance Measures: How will they drive Quality of Care?
Moderator	Harlan Krumholz, MD
Faculty	Edward Ellerbeck, MD - Presentation Slides Rodney A. Hayward, MD - Presentation Slides Thomas H. Lee, MD - Presentation Slides
Emergency Department Over-Crowding: Impact on Cardiovascular quality and outcomes
Moderator	Ivan Rokos, MD
Faculty	Deborah B. Diercks, MD - Presentation Slides Judd E. Hollander, MD - Presentation Slides Sandra M. Schneider, MD - Presentation Slides
Turbocharging the Guidelines
Moderator	Sanjay Kaul, MD
Faculty	Jeffrey l. Anderson, MD - Presentation Slides George A. Diamond, MD - Presentation Slides Clyde W. Yancy, MD - Presentation Slides
Evidenced-based QI and Knowledge Translation – Barriers and Solutions to the Implementation of QI
Moderators	Mathew J. Reeves, BVSc, PhD Lee H. Schwamm, MD, FAHA
Faculty	Jeremy Grimshaw, MBChB, PhD, FRCGP - Presentation Slides Ramesh Madhaven, MD - Presentation Slides Sandeep Sachdeva, MD, FAHA, FACP - Presentation Slides
Patient-Centered Healthcare – 2008 and Beyond
Moderator	Eric D. Peterson, MD
Faculty	James R. Mault, MD Victor M. Montori, MD David Wennberg, MD

Get with the Guidelines: Highlighted Poster Presentations

Predictors of Cardiac Rehabilitation Referral in Coronary Artery Disease Patients: Results from the AHA’s Get with the Guidelines Program
Todd M. Brown, Univ. of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL
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Comparing the Quality of Cardiovascular Care in Rural and Urban Hospitals: Insights from the American Heart Association Get With the Guidelines CAD Program
Charles B. Dawson, Univ. of Kentucky, Lexington, KY
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Current Use of Beta-blockers in Patients with Reactive Airway Diseases Who Are Hospitalized with Acute Coronary Syndromes
Benjamin A. Olenchock, The Brigham and Women’s Hosp, TIMI Study Group, Boston, MA
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Predictors of In-Hospital Mortality in Patients Hospitalized for Heart Failure
Pamela N. Peterson, Denver Health Medical Ctr, Denver, CO
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Utilization of Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy in Patients Hospitalized with Heart Failure
Jonathan P. Piccini, Duke Clinical Res Inst, Durham, NC
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Hospital Variation and Characteristics of ICD Implantation in Eligible Patients with Heart Failure: Data from the GWTGHF Registry
Bimal Shah, Duke Clinical Res Inst, Durham, NC
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The Association of Changes in Hospital Door to Balloon Times with Improvements in Overall AMI Process Performance and Outcomes: Findings from GWTG
Tracy Y. Wang, Univ of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
View Poster

News Releases

Education, simple measures keys to improving vets' hypertension care
Focused and inexpensive measures improved high blood pressure control and treatment among veterans, according to a study presented at the American Heart Association's 9th Scientific Forum on Quality of Care and Outcomes Research in Cardiovascular Disease and Stroke.
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Heart failure patients may suffer similarly to advanced cancer patients
Heart failure outpatients have similar numbers of symptoms and levels of depression and spiritual well-being as patients with advanced lung and pancreatic cancer, researchers reported at the American Heart Association's 9th Scientific Forum on Quality of Care and Outcomes Research in Cardiovascular Disease and Stroke.
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Some women more likely to miss or ignore heart attack warning signs
Many women under age 55 aren't seeking timely treatment for heart attack because they expect the warning signs and their reaction to follow a Hollywood script — tightening in the chest, shortness of breath, clutching the chest while dropping to one knee.
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Remote monitoring improves heart failure patients’ health, may reduce hospital readmissions
A remote monitoring program can improve the condition of heart failure patients who are mobile and may reduce hospital readmissions, according to a pilot study reported at the American Heart Association’s 9th Scientific Forum on Quality of Care and Outcomes Research in Cardiovascular Disease and Stroke.
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Exercise plus psychological counseling may benefit depressed heart failure patients
Aerobic exercise combined with cognitive behavioral therapy may improve physical function, reduce depressive symptoms and enhance quality of life in depressed heart failure patients, researchers reported at the American Heart Association’s 9th Scientific Forum on Quality of Care and Outcomes Research in Cardiovascular Disease and Stroke.
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