Survey on concept of antihypertensive therapy and hypertension management among general practitioners in community health centers in 11 cities of China / 中华全科医师杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective:To survey the status of antihypertensive therapy knowledge and hypertension management among general practitioners in community health centers (CHCs) in China.Methods:Based on the eastern, western, southern and northern regions of the country, 350 CHCs were selected from 11 cities across the country with stratified sampling method for study sites, and one general practitioner was selected from each CHC. The questionnaire survey was conducted from March 12 to April 20, 2018 among 350 participants. The content of the questionnaire included the proportion of hypertensive patients in the consultation, treatment target rate, antihypertensive drugs and protocol, the medication compliance, follow-up, blood pressure self-measurement, and the impact of hierachical medical system on CHC.Results:Total 350 valid questionnaires were recovered. The survey showed that: (1) Among the patients treated by general practitioners, 46% (30%, 60%) were hypertensive patients including 41% (40%, 55%) with primary hypertension and 42% (40%, 50%) with secondary hypertension; 72% (60%, 80%) of the patients had comorbidities, including dyslipidemia, diabetes, and coronary heart disease. (2) Western medicine was the main antihypertensive treatment [90% (82%, 100%) ], calcium channel blockers were the most commonly used antihypertensive drug [46%(30%,60%)], the therapeutic protocol was mainly single agent [35% (25%, 50%) ]or free combination [50% (40%, 60%) ]; the stable(9.1±0.8), long-acting (9.0±0.9) and high standard reaching rate (8.1±1.1) antihypertensive drugs were first considered, and the standard reaching rate of hypertension treatment was 61% (50%, 75%) . (3) The regular follow-up rate, adherence to blood pressure self-test rate and long-term regular medication rate was 60%(50%,70%), 51%(40%,70%) and 65%(50%,70%), respectively. The factors affecting patients′ compliance were history of cardiovascular diseases (8.4±1.1)and patients′ cognition of disease(8.3±1.1). General practitioners believed that the positive effects of the hierarchical diagnosis and treatment system include helping to establish a closer relationship with patients [62.6% (219/350)] and improving patient compliance for community preferential reimbursement policies[58.6% (205/350) ]. The challenges faced by CHC included higher patient expectations [52.8% (185/350)] and increased outpatient visits [52.6% (184/350)]. Insufficient diagnostic equipment [68.3% (239/350)], inadequate dispensing [52.3% (183/350)] and other issues restricted the development of CHC, and the clinical competence of general practitioners [51.7% (181/350)] need to be improved.Conclusion:Patients with hypertension account for about half of the total number of visits in community health service centers, and most of them are comorbid with cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases or risk factors. The long-term treatment compliance and self-management of blood pressure need to be further improved.