National Heart Attack Alert Program
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
Coordinating Committee Meeting

October 28-29, 2002
Bethesda, Maryland

HIGHLIGHTS

• Stephen Cantrill was welcomed to the Coordinating Committee as the new representative of the American College of Emergency Physicians. Dr. Cantrill is Associate Director of the Department of Emergency Medicine at the Denver Health Medical Center and an assistant professor in the Division of Emergency Medicine, Department of Surgery, at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center. He succeeds Dr. Mark Smith.
• The following substitutes were welcomed to the meeting:
  – Ms. Kemlee White of the American Association of Occupational Health Nurses
  – Ms. Pat Bonifer-Tiedt of the American Red Cross
  – Mr. Jonathan Moore of the International Association of Firefighters
• Dr. James Atkins reported that the Executive Committee reviewed the activities of the Act in Time to Heart Attack Signs and discussed pursuing further such issues as the identification of prodomal symptoms, the appropriate timeline between symptom recognition and treatment, and quality assurance initiatives through the collection of additional information and discussion with appropriate experts.
• The chairs of the Education, Health Systems, and Science Base Subcommittees reported on their activities and plans.
• Dr. Gerald DeVaughn gave a presentation on the activities and programs of the National Cardiovascular Health Conference entitled Cardiovascular Health for All, held April 11 to 13 in Washington, DC.
• Ms. Mary Hand reminded participants that Drs. Atkins and Joseph Ornato both made presentations at this conference and that these presentations were Webcast. She urged participants to view these Webcasts on the Program’s Web site.
• Ms. Terry Long, Senior Manager for Communications of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute’s (NHLBI) Office of Prevention, Education, and Control (OPEC), reviewed the media activities that were conducted in conjunction with the above-mentioned conference.
• Mr. Alan Mertz, Executive Vice President of the Healthcare Leadership Council and Chairman of the Confidentiality Coalition, reviewed the ramifications of the new Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) regulations.
• Dr. Jeanette Guyton-Krishnan, a Public Health Analyst in the NHLBI’s OPEC, provided an update of data sources related to NHAAP-relevant Healthy People 2010 data sources.
• Dr. Wayne Giles of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention discussed a baseline data report relevant to one of the pertinent Healthy People 2010 objectives.
• Ms. Long discussed the progress of the Act in Time to Heart Attack Signs social marketing campaign and reviewed its various products and activities and the response to them.
• Ms. Pat Bonifer-Tiedt, Director of Research and Product Development for Health, Safety, and Community Services of the American Red Cross, updated the Committee on activities conducted by the American Red Cross in support of the campaign. These activities include placing materials on the national Web site, providing materials for newsletters, providing the NHLBI with mailing labels so that kits could be mailed to every Red Cross chapter in the country, incorporating Act in Time to Heart Attack Signs messages and products into another cardiovascular health training program, and developing complementary materials for Spanish-speaking audiences.
• Ms. Eva Grace, Project Coordinator for the American College of Cardiology’s Emergency Cardiac Care committee, reported that an Act in Time to Heart Attack Signs section was prepared for the organization’s Web site, including the NHLBI contact information and an article prepared for the e-newsletter. A short news article on Act in Time to Heart Attack Signs was placed at the centerfold of Cardiology, the monthly periodical.
• Dr. Lee Garvey, Society of Chest Pain Centers and Providers, reported that materials have been sent to all Society members in the past 6 months, as well as new members planning chest pain centers in their institutions. In addition, the Society has launched a local, community-focused initiative in Charlotte to spread the news about Act in Time to Heart Attack Signs.
• Dr. George Sopko of the NHLBI reviewed the recommendations that resulted from an NHLBI workshop conducted earlier in the month on Women’s Ischemic Syndrome Evaluation (WISE).
• Dr. Harry Selker of the Society of General Internal Medicine discussed the recommendations that resulted from the NHLBI WISE workshop where he addressed “Key Messages About Symptoms of Acute Ischemic Heart Disease (IHD) in Women and Recommendations for Practice.”
• Dr. Robert Zalenski of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine made a presentation entitled “When the Family Becomes the Patient: Caring for Survivors of Patients Who Have Sudden Death from Cardiovascular Causes.”
• Dr. Daniel Stryer of the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality called the Committee’s attention to a series of articles on the Cardiac Arrhythmia Management vi Patient Outcomes Research Team (PORT-II) that appeared in the September issue of the American Heart Journal.
• Mr. David Bryson of the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration reported on the National Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Research Agenda meeting that was held in June.
• Ms. Hand asked participants if they would like to pursue electronic registration for future meetings, and the majority of members agreed. She then thanked participants for attending and adjourned the meeting.