{"id":11875,"date":"2013-09-13T13:54:32","date_gmt":"2013-09-13T19:54:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/?p=11875"},"modified":"2013-09-13T13:57:21","modified_gmt":"2013-09-13T19:57:21","slug":"beth-el-faculty-member-aims-to-lower-blood-pressure-increase-communication","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/?p=11875","title":{"rendered":"Beth-El faculty member aims to lower blood pressure, increase communication"},"content":{"rendered":"

Editor\u2019s note: This is the third in a series of occasional articles about the activities that will take place inside the Lane Center for Academic Health Sciences. The Lane Center is\u00a0scheduled to open in Jan. 2014 on North Nevada Avenue.<\/b><\/p>\n

High blood pressure is often called the silent killer.<\/p>\n

But a Beth-El College of Nursing and Health Sciences faculty member is anything but quiet when it comes to the illness that affects as many as one in three adult Americans.<\/p>\n

\"IMG_4122\"<\/a>\u201cHigh blood pressure is one of those conditions that is so important to identify early, and to treat appropriately, because of the risk,\u201d Amy Silva-Smith, associate professor, Beth-El College of Nursing and Health Sciences, said.<\/p>\n

High blood pressure can cause strokes as well as heart and kidney damage. While one-third of adult Americans have the disease, estimates are that only one half are receiving treatment. That\u2019s not good enough for the former head of a primary care clinic and with more than two decades of practical experience working with adults.<\/p>\n

High blood pressure is defined as anything more than 140\/90 and borderline \u2013 a warning level of high blood pressure — is defined as pressure levels of 130\/85.<\/p>\n

Silva-Smith considers herself a \u201cconvener\u201d at the new Lane Center for Academic Health Sciences. In that role, she hopes to rally health care professionals from a variety of UCCS disciplines, as well as health professionals working for Peak Vista Community Health Centers and the CU School of Medicine, to combat a disease found across the age range of adulthood. High blood pressure can be prevented through diet, exercise, stress management and medicines. She also believes there are intersections between high blood pressure and other common diseases including diabetes and arthritis.<\/p>\n

A traditional approach to medical care is to prescribe medicine to treat high blood pressure, Silva-Smith said. But that method isn\u2019t working. People don\u2019t take their medication, a decision that leads to a six-fold increase in fatal strokes.<\/p>\n

Why people don\u2019t take their medicines isn\u2019t clearly understood. But Silva-Smith believes the odds of finding effective ways to help patients lower their risks of serious illness increase when professionals from different perspectives and training work together and closely involve the patient.<\/p>\n

\"IMG_4144\"<\/a>\u201cGone are the days that I, as a health care provider, can say that I know best,\u201d Silva-Smith said. \u201cWhat we\u2019re seeing is a need to say \u2018let\u2019s sit at the table and let\u2019s talk together about what\u2019s best for this particular person.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

As a convener of people with differing skills and backgrounds, Silva-Smith is practicing a new trend in health care called integration. But the topic isn\u2019t new to her. At the Lane Center, she will share lessons learned from her experience running a primary care clinic at Palisades at Broadmoor Bluffs, a senior living community that partnered with UCCS to create new senior living models.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy experience with Palisades was crucial. We learned a lot about how my work as a primary care provider, and the work of those leading exercises or in nutrition, intersected. It\u2019s all relevant to the work that we\u2019ll be doing at the Lane Center,\u201d Silva-Smith said.<\/p>\n

Silva-Smith talks about building a table, a place she describes as where health professionals from different disciplines and clients come together to solve problems and meet a client\u2019s goals.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe table is virtual,\u201d\u00a0she said. \u201cWhat the table represents is communication. A system of communication will be established at the Lane Center so that when the nurse practitioner does assessments on an individual,\u00a0\u00a0those findings are shared with a team of\u00a0nutrition specialists, behavioral health\u00a0experts,\u00a0and the person in charge of physical activity wellness for the purpose of optimizing health care for that individual.”<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we do it correctly, people will understand that communication will make their experience better, their health care better and their health better.\u201d<\/p>\n

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