News and Updates for Healthcare Professionals

BP Meds Should Begin Promptly, New ACC/AHA Guidelines Say

The target blood pressure level for adults remains below 130/80 mm Hg, but drug therapy should be initiated sooner, according to new guidelines published Thursday by the American Heart Association (AHA) and American College of Cardiology (ACC). Eleven other medical organizations endorsed the new guidelines, which replace those issued in…
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Integration of Palliative Care into Heart Failure Care: Consensus-Based Recommendations from the Heart Failure Society of America

Heart failure (HF) is characterized by significant symptoms, compromised quality of life, frequent hospital admissions, and high mortality rates; palliative care (PC) is, therefore, highly relevant for patients with HF and their clinicians. Multiple guidelines and consensus statements recommend the provision of PC alongside HF management. However, few resources exist…
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View the recent Webinar from the Primary Care Collaborative and American College of Clinical Pharmacy’s on Managing Chronic Conditions with Team-Based, Whole-Person Primary Care.

On May 20, the Primary Care Collaborative (PCC) and American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP) held a webinar exploring the powerful role coordinated, team-based approaches to whole-person primary care can play in battling against chronic illnesses, such as Type II diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
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Person-Centered Care in Multiple Chronic Conditions

Person-centered care as defined by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) means that individuals’ values and preferences are elicited and once expressed, guide all aspects of their health care, supporting their realistic health and life goals. Person-centered care is achieved through a dynamic relationship among individuals, others who are important to them, and all relevant providers. This collaboration informs decision-making to the extent that the individual desires.

With support from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, a learning collaborative comprised of frontline implementers, innovators, and researchers with expertise in person-centered care planning was formed to discuss models and implementation of PCCP. The learning collaborative participated in six learning sessions from June 2024 to January 2025. Below is a compendium of PCCP models, resources, and materials that were shared by community members during learning sessions.

Age-Friendly Care for Persons, Families and Caregivers

Age-Friendly care includes the concept of person-centered care that is equitable and guided by evidence-based practices. The focus is on safe and effective care that includes the 4Ms. What matters most to the person and family, safe medication delivery, earlier recognition in mentation changes and by maintaining safe mobility and physical functioning.

Important resources:

Medication Safety

In 2023, the CDC reported that the most common types of adverse drug events are associated with allergic reactions, side effects, over-medication, medication errors, and drug–drug interactions. Healthcare advances in new drug development, older medications with newer indications for use, an aging population, and the expansion of prescription drug coverage may lead to an increase in these events. When nurses understand what determines evidence, how to implement guidelines as standard of care, and what establishes best practices to optimize medication safety, they can help prevent medication errors.

Patients have long associated trust and respect with nursing. However, recent incidents of nurses delivering inappropriate medications (wrong drug, wrong dose) have led to catastrophic consequences. Most notoriously, former nurse RaDonda Vaught was stripped of her nursing license and charged with reckless homicide and abuse of an impaired adult.

Anticholinergics, widely used in clinical practice for an extensive range of diseases, exert effects on circulation, respiration, alertness, and vision by blocking the action of acetylcholine (a neurotransmitter) within the choli­nergic sys­tem.

Providers prescribe benzodiazepines (BZDs)—also known as anxiolytics, hypnotics, muscle relaxants, anticonvulsants, and amnestic medications—to manage several symptoms and conditions, including anxiety, insomnia, alcohol withdrawal, sedation, muscle spasms, agitation, and seizures.

To ensure safety and effective care, nurses must maintain their knowledge and understanding of opioid pharmacologic properties and best practices when caring for patients with acute and chronic non-cancer pain.

Federal Initiatives for Persons with Multiple Chronic Conditions

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality

Three Notice of Funding Opportunity for AHRQ’s Health Extension Collaboratives, National Coordinating Center, and National Evaluating Center are now all available. This includes fifteen grants for state-based Healthcare Extension Cooperatives to accelerate the dissemination and implementation of patient-centered outcomes research evidence into healthcare delivery. The National Coordinating Center will provide technical assistance, learning networks, communications, and dissemination guidance to the healthcare extension cooperatives. The National Evaluation Center will assess program implementation and impact. Information about a technical assistance webinar for this funding announcement is forthcoming. Questions may be submitted to AHRQ_HES@ahrq.hhs.gov.

More: Person-Centered Care Planning for People Living with or at Risk for Multiple Chronic Conditions

News and Updates for the Patient and Family

How Patients with Multiple Chronic Conditions Can Benefit from Home Healthcare Tools and Remote Patient Monitoring

By: Steven John Cumper, B.App.Sc. (Osteo.), M.Ost. Patients with multiple chronic conditions (MCC), or two or more conditions have complex care needs. These needs require ongoing home monitoring to prevent an escalation in their disease – such as an exacerbation, admission into hospital, debility and reduced physical functioning. Healthcare professionals…
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Latest Posts from Our Blog

Caregiving in the U.S.

The National Alliance for Caregiving, AARP and the John A. Hartford Foundation recently released Caregiving in the US, 2025 Report. There are currently, 63 million Americans who provide ongoing complex caregiving. Currently 1 in 4 Americans is a family caregiver. This has increased by 45% from 2015. Persons requiring care…
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MCCRC and HealthCom Media – Providing resources for professionals and patients

The Multiple Chronic Conditions Resource Center (MCCRC) is one of several resources held under the umbrella of HealthCom Media. The MCCRC provides clinical practice and health policy updates for healthcare professionals, patients, families and policymakers. It is a one-stop source for all current evidence based guidelines and resources. Sign up…
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AHRQ’s Person Centered Care, Learning Community

The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) has long-been advocates for promoting person-centered care. AHRQ has recently established a Learning Community (LC) to discuss models of person-centered care planning (PCCP) and real-world implementation with front-line providers. The LC will evaluate barriers and feasible solutions to meet the complex care…
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What are the 4 M’s?

The Hartford Foundation, Institute for Healthcare Improvement, American Hospital Association, and the Catholic Health Association among other agencies are promoting a healthcare system that we want for ourselves and others. Recognizing the need for improved care for the nation’s largest patient population – those living with 2 or more chronic…
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MCCRC Podcast: Cheryl Phillips, M.D, AGSF, John A Hartford Foundation

Cheryl Phillips, M.D, AGSF, is the senior program consultant for the John A Hartford Foundation’s Age-Friendly Health Systems initiative and discusses the 4Ms. What Matters, Medication, Mentation and Mobility and how these concepts interface with person-centered care planning for persons with and at risk for multiple chronic conditions
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Person Centered Care Planning for Persons with Multiple Chronic Conditions

Arlene Bierman MD, MS, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Brittany Watson MD, MPH, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Jane Pederson MD, MS, Stratis Health – discuss the recent JAMA Online publication Person-Centered Care Planning for People Living with or at Risk for Multiple Chronic Conditions. Discussion includes federal…
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Dr Kim Kuebler Implementing Palliative Care in Multiple Chronic Conditions in the U.S.

Dr Arlene Bierman MD, MS, Director of Center for Evidence and Practice Improvement: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality

Dr Joanne Lynn MD, MA, MS, Director Center for Elder Care and Advanced Illness, Altarum Institute

Multiple Chronic Conditions Resource Center offers Healthcare Professionals and Patients with FREE:

Updates on health policy and clinical practice
One-stop source to access current evidence-based practice guidelines and resources to support clinical management of multiple chronic conditions
Newsletter updates on policy and practice issues in multiple chronic conditions