Course Detail

Hypertension, referred to as the “silent killer”, affects millions of Americans annually and is one of the leading causes of stroke and renal failure. Hypertension is often accompanied by other co-morbid conditions such as diabetes and heart failure. Numerous medications can be used to manage hypertension. Selected medications are preferred over others based on co-morbid conditions. Health care providers must be aware of preferred treatment strategies (pharmacological and non-pharmacological) in order to reduce the risk of complications from hypertension. This course provides an overview of the pharmacist’s management of hypertension including how to design a patient-specific treatment and monitoring plan. This course reviews literature and guidelines that shape current hypertension treatment recommendations and provides a series of case scenarios to refine the pharmacist’s skills in designing an anti-hypertensive regimen.

Learning Objectives:

1. Identify complications of hypertension and the role of antihypertensive therapies in reducing these complications;
2. State blood pressure (BP) goals for individual patients based on recommendations from the Eighth National Joint Committee (JNC-8) and American Heart Association;
3. Identify pharmacological treatments that are appropriate based on specific demographic or clinical conditions;
4. Design a patient-specific hypertensive regimen and monitoring plan; and
5. Recommend non-pharmacological strategies and lifestyle modifications that should be employed in the management of hypertension.

CE: 2.25 Contact Hours
Universal Activity Number (UAN): 0025-0000-15-173-H01-P
Expiration Date: 12/7/2018
Course Number: KE-CN#CVD002V2
Instructor: Kristin Watson, PharmD, BCPS, Associate Professor, University of Maryland School of Pharmacy

This course is sponsored in part by an educational grant from the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and the Institute for a Healthiest Maryland.


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