The Consortium for Southeastern Hypertension Control is a nonprofit (501c3) organization created in 1992 to improve the disproportionate hypertension-related morbidity and mortality throughout the region. The southeastern region with the largest ethnic minority component has the highest prevalence of hypertension and hypertension-related complications. From the initial six charter members, COSEHC has grown to include a wide variety of members, connecting academic physicians, primary care clinicians, public health officials, allied health personnel and health care consumers. The Consortium promotes scientifically based research and educational activities and offers an ideal translational research network through its CV Centers of Excellence.

Southeast Regional Clinical Database

Participating physicians are linked through a network to share information, provide on-line consultation and assist in facilitating access to any member of the network. Secured clinical data is used for quality improvement, education, research and performance improvement.

Community Centric

COSEHC developed a partnership with community practitioners as a direct intervention to coordinate and facilitate evidence-based best practices. Physicians participating in this network have access to groundbreaking approaches leading to opportunities for improved access to healthcare and better management of cardiovascular disease. The networked practices (CV Centers of Excellence) in-turn create partnerships within their local communities to improve the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease.

Expert, Experienced Leadership

COSEHC provides physician continuing medical education as an ACCME accredited CME provider. Annual and regional CME activities offer faculty experts in the field of vascular disease. Additionally, many of the COSEHC physician members are domestic and international leaders and consultants in both the cardiovascular scientific and clinical world of healthcare.

Academic-Clinical Partnership

The Consortium has developed a translational research network(Consortium) in the Southeast with its interface of academic and clinical practices. This network is the vehicle to disseminate education, research, quality improvement and patient education by the organization to the regional communities.

Continuous Quality Improvement

COSEHC engages in continuous quality improvement through use of CME programming, clinical data analysis, benchmarking capabilities and performance improvement initiatives. COSEHC physicians participate on national and professional organizational guideline development. CQI processes are a critical component of the organization’s mission.

COSEHC defines the outcome of its strategic approach as the improvement in global risk factor management to reduce vascular disease and its related morbidity and mortality. To achieve this, COSEHC strategies are: 1) Define effective healthcare delivery models, 2) Use EMRs to improve care delivery and track performance, 3) Translate science to clinical application, 4) Disseminate and implement evidence-based guidelines, 5) Develop partnerships with healthcare groups, 6) Improve health care access, 7) Develop population strategies, and 8) Promote patient education and health care literacy.

Membership is open to any individual concerned about vascular disease at no charge. The organization’s goals should be of special interest to physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, pharmacists, insurers, research scientists, employers and public health service agencies.