FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE		CONTACT: MURFY ALEXANDER
JULY 6, 2006		ANNE SMART
		615.736.5295

NASHVILLE GENERAL TO LEAD NATIONAL HEALTH INITIATIVE,
U.S. REP. COOPER ANNOUNCES
—$3 million for Nashville pilot project to serve as national model
for battling chronic diseases

 

NASHVILLE—Nashville General Hospital at Meharry (NGHM) has been selected to lead a national pilot project to help those at-risk for chronic diseases, it was announced today by U.S. Representative Jim Cooper and NGHM.

Nashville General has been awarded $3 million to support the opening of a new clinic in north Nashville that will be the model clinic for a national program. Nashville General is the only hospital in the country to receive the award. The Nashville General clinic will target patients who are most at-risk for chronic diseases. The grant was awarded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Office of Minority Health.

"It is time we declared war on chronic disease and put the nation’s best assets to work helping folks who are facing these serious health challenges every day,” Cooper said. "This pilot project recognizes Nashville General’s potential to be a national leader in this field and gives our city the opportunity to lead the nation in the fight to save lives threatened by chronic disease.”

"This is exciting news for all of Nashville, putting the city and Nashville General at the forefront of the battle to control this national health problem,” said Mayor Bill Purcell. “I thank Congressman Cooper for his work to involve the CDC and I look forward to working with Nashville General as this pilot project begins serving those in need in Nashville.”

Reginald W. Coopwood, M.D., FACS, Chief Executive Officer of the Metropolitan Nashville Hospital Authority, said he is proud that Nashville General is the first hospital in the country to be selected for this program. “This is a great honor and an important opportunity for Nashville General. We are committed to making a positive difference in the lives of those in Nashville who are threatened by chronic disease. I appreciate the work Congressman Cooper has done to position Nashville General alongside the CDC and the Office of Minority Health as we all come together to battle this national problem.”

According to Dr. Coopwood, the new clinic will be located in north Nashville. It is expected to open in the fall. It will help patients who are at-risk for developing a chronic disease as well as those who have already been diagnosed. The clinic will provide education and treatment services including individualized lifestyle assessments, weight loss plans, strategies to enhance physical activity, customized nutritional plans and educational classes to increase awareness of high blood pressure and diabetes numbers. To ensure continuity of care, the clinic will use the hospital’s state-of-the-art information technology to maintain electronic medical records for each patient.

"The idea of empowering patients to take control of their health and to encourage physicians to talk with their patients about risk factors such as high blood pressure, lack of physical activity, or poor nutrition is often overlooked in a clinical setting,” Dr. Walter W. Williams, the CDC’s Associate Director for Minority Health said in a statement. “Nashville General Hospital at Meharry will be in a good position to test innovative approaches about what is most effective in reaching higher risk populations.”

The clinic and its services are designed to improve the health profile of patients dealing with what is increasingly known as metabolic syndrome. According to medical professionals, metabolic syndrome is a collection of risk factors such as obesity, high blood pressure and elevated blood sugar levels that can increase an individual’s risk of heart disease, diabetes and stroke.

The clinic will operate in partnership with the Meharry Medical College and the Nashville Safety Net Consortium.

The clinic and its services will be open to all Nashville residents but it will specifically target patients who are at higher risk of developing chronic diseases. For example, black men in north Nashville are three times more likely to have diabetes. Black women in north Nashville are nearly twice as likely to suffer from diabetes. White Nashvillians, by contrast, have a slightly higher cholesterol rate.

The $3 million is to support the startup and operating costs for the project over a three year period. Nashville General will launch a city-wide outreach program to inform potential patients about the clinic and its services in the coming months.

Nashville General currently serves more than 80,000 individuals in the area each year.

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For additional information contact:

Murfy Alexander or Anne Smart
Office of U.S. Rep. Jim Cooper
(615) 736-5295

Judith McCoy
Director of Public Relations and Community Development
Metropolitan Nashville Hospital Authority
(615) 341-4082

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