Posted on: 31 July 2019
The West Yorkshire and Harrogate Healthy Hearts programme has now completed its public engagement on its upcoming work to identify and treat - at scale - patients whose LDL* cholesterol levels that may be better controlled through switching to a high intensity statin, and also initiating a statin in those patients at risk of developing CVD.
(*there are two types of cholesterol - good cholesterol (high-density lipoprotein, or HDL) - and bad cholesterol (low-density lipoprotein, or LDL). If the level of bad cholesterol in your blood is too high it can increase the risk of heat disease, including heart attack or stroke)
The engagement took place from the beginning of June until mid July 2019 and more than 200 responses were received, with some completing the online questionnaire and others giving their feedback in focus groups that took place across West Yorkshire and Harrogate.
An analysis of the work is now being undertaken with early results showing:
- 95% of respondents understand the aims of phase two of Healthy Hearts
- 88% of respondents think it will be of benefit to local people
- 80% of respondents thought our draft letter to patients, outlining why changes were being made to their prescriptions, were clear
- nearly a quarter of responses were from black and Asian minority groups
Programme Manager Pete Waddingham said: “We really want to thank all those people who took the time to fill in the questionnaire and all those who came along to our focus groups. A lot of interesting data has been gathered, including valuable information on where patients are most likely to turn to if they had an issue with a prescription for statins, and where they’re most likely to seek advice and guidance on leading a healthier life.
“Some comments revealed that some common misconceptions surrounding statins still endure, while others have provided valuable insights into people’s hopes and expectations for phase two, allowing the programme team to better understand what’s important to them as patients.
“We also want to thank all our communications and engagement colleagues in the West Yorkshire and Harrogate Health Care Partnership, and all the CCGs, who’ve been brilliant in their support during this engagement. The findings will be used to shape how the programme communicates with patients and clinicians in phase two of Healthy Hearts, which is due to begin in the autumn.”
You can read more about this engagement work on the West Yorkshire and Harrogate Healthy Hearts website