American College of Cardiology

Stable Angina GAP Project in Alabama

Guideline ACC/AHA/ACP-ASIM Guidelines for Management of Patients with Chronic Stable Angina Principal Investigators John G. Canto, MD, MSPH, FACC Catarina I. Kiefe, MD, PhD Project Coordinator Donna Bartle, RN, BSN

Partners

• Alabama Chapter of the ACC
• Alabama Quality Assurance Foundation
• American Diabetes Association
• American Medical Association
• CV Outcomes
• Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation
• University of Alabama at Birmingham
  • Chest Pain Center
  • Center for Outcomes and Effectiveness Research and Education
  • School of Medicine
  • School of Public Health

Project Setting

Physician practices

Project Summary

In May 2002, the Stable Angina GAP Project began developing the project study design, determining the interventions and laying the groundwork for implementation. Information about the GAP Project was disseminated to attendees at an ACC Alabama Chapter meeting later that month to gauge general interest and recruit potential participants. Invitation letters were then sent to ACC members in Alabama to collect basic information about office practices and to identify volunteers.

In the planning stage, several designs were considered – all of which were fairly broad in scope and challenging to implement because of the large patient population and data collection requirements. Revisions were considered to simplify the project and enhance its fiscal feasibility. An educational grant from CV Therapeutics and funds from the American Medical Association (AMA), a partnering organization for the project, also supported the planning process.

The proposal considered implementing several interventional tools and evaluation instruments in the “Stable Angina GAP Project Tool Kit” described below. These tools were envisioned both paper- and web-based.

Intervention tools included:

• Slide kit
• Pocket guide
• Chart stickers
• Physician feedback form
• Cardiac flow sheet
• AMA data collection flow sheet
• Clinic departure form
• Patient education booklet
• Prescription form

Evaluation instruments included:

• Physician questionnaire
• Data management application

In September 2003, the decision was made to discontinue the GAP Project in Alabama after evaluating the complexity and the scope of the proposal in relation to the available resources.

The ACC commends Dr. John Canto, Dr. Catarina Kiefe, Ms. Donna Bartle and all those who worked on the project for their energy and commitment.

The college gratefully acknowledges the generous support of an unrestricted educational grant from CV Therapeutics for the Stable Angina GAP Project in Alabama.

Click on any of the links below to go to a GAP Program: