Reducing Racial and Ethnic Variations in Care of Patients with Myocardial Infarction

Data from a national quality-improvement initiative suggest that disparities in hospital care shrink with overall adherence to evidence-based guidelines.

Studies have shown that members of racial and ethnic minorities are less likely than whites to receive evidence-based care for cardiovascular diseases and more likely to be treated at facilities with suboptimal results on composite performance measures. These investigators analyzed data from the U.S. Get With The Guidelines–Coronary Artery Disease program to examine racial and ethnic differences in evidence-based care for myocardial infarction (MI) among participating hospitals and to assess whether such disparities decrease as performance measures show improvement over time. The analysis included 121,528 whites, 10,882 blacks, and 10,183 Hispanics treated at 443 hospitals between January 2002 and June 2007.

Each performance measure for MI c…

Reviewing Author

JoAnne M. Foody, MD

Disclosures

Consultant / Advisory boardAegerion; Amarin; Bristol-Myers Squibb; Janssen; Merck; Pfizer; Sanofi-Aventis; Boehringer Ingelheim

Leadership positions in professional societiesAmerican College of Cardiology, Cardiosmart (Co-chair)

JoAnne M. Foody, MD

Disclosures

Consultant / Advisory boardAegerion; Amarin; Bristol-Myers Squibb; Janssen; Merck; Pfizer; Sanofi-Aventis; Boehringer Ingelheim

Leadership positions in professional societiesAmerican College of Cardiology, Cardiosmart (Co-chair)