The benefits of a team-based care approach to improve drug adherence in hypertension

Team-based care is a patient management strategy involving a team of at least two healthcare professionals working collaboratively toward a shared clinical goal. This approach is now increasingly recommended by international hypertension guidelines mainly to improve medication adherence and hence, blood pressure control. The goal of this paper was to review the most recent evidence on the benefits of a team-based care approach in the management of hypertension. The results show that in recent years, numerous controlled clinical trials have demonstrated the efficacy of this strategy to lower blood pressure, achieve blood pressure targets more rapidly, and obtain more hypertensive patients under control. These improvements are due essentially to two factors: improved drug adherence/persistence and a reduction of therapeutic inertia. Best results are obtained when physicians collaborate with pharmacists and/or nurses, but other healthcare professionals may be involved successfully as well. Recent data have also demonstrated that the team-based care approach is cost-effective. These observations should be a strong incentive for hypertension centers to engage in the development of a team-based care strategy.