Heart Failure Patients at Center of Recent ACC Forum

"My heart failure diagnosis hit me like a brick," said a participant taking part in ACC's first-ever Heart Failure Patient Forum in September. The unique forum was intended to help the ACC better understand the particular challenges individuals face after receiving a heart failure diagnosis and throughout their journey and to help inform and shape future ACC programs and products for both clinicians and patients.

Specifically, the Heart Failure Patient Forum engaged patients in group discussions about their heart failure journey – from diagnosis to ongoing treatment. Patients shared their biggest challenges, ranging from traveling and eating out to impacts on family members, as well as their personal tips on what keeps them on track with their treatment. They also participated in a group activity intended to map potential solutions based on their personal experiences.

"Heart failure is a serious lifelong condition that requires careful management," said another participant, who thanked the College for taking the time to listen to patients. Stay tuned for an upcoming Cardiology feature with more details on the forum, as well as additional patient insights regarding risk communications – the topic of a separate ACC patient forum taking place later in October.

Newest ACC National Quality Campaign Focused on Reducing PCI Bleeding Risk

The ACC's newest National Quality Campaign – Reduce the Risk: PCI Bleed – focuses on helping hospitals and institutions minimize PCI-associated bleeding risks and save patient lives through widespread adoption of evidence-based best practices.

The campaign builds on the ACC's proven track record in helping facilities and cardiovascular professionals take advantage of key strategies to assess patient bleed risk, decrease bleeding rates and improve patient outcomes. Specifically, Reduce the Risk: PCI Bleed offers a learning network and tools to support quality improvement goals; a facility-assessment resource to pinpoint areas for improvement; a customized data dashboard to track and benchmark progress; and access to a community of national experts and leading facilities and institutions.

Additionally, physicians and advanced practice practitioners participating in the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) can count Reduce the Risk: PCI Bleed as a high-weight Improvement Activity for part of the CMS Quality Payment Program, provided data were being submitted prior to Oct. 1. One high-weight activity counts toward half of the total Improvement Activity requirements under MIPS. An attestation form will be available for download in the coming weeks.

Don't Miss Important ACC.19 Deadlines!

The ACC is currently accepting submissions in a wide variety of submission categories for its Annual Scientific Session (ACC.19) taking place in New Orleans, LA, from March 16-18, 2019. The deadline for abstract and case submissions is Oct. 16 at 1:00 p.m. ET, while Young Investigator Award Submissions are being accepted through Sept. 10 at 11: 59 p.m. ET. Submissions for Late-Breaking Clinical Trial sessions will be accepted starting Oct. 24 through Dec. 5 at 1:00 p.m. ET.

Abstracts and cases are an important component of the scientific program, providing a vital channel for sharing important scientific research and engaging in scientific discourse and debate. Accepted abstracts will also be published online in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, one of the top-ranked cardiovascular journals in the world. New this year, Young Investigator Award winners will be announced live during the College's revamped Convocation, Awards and Inauguration on the final day of the meeting.

Learn more about the submission process and key dates at https://accscientificsession.acc.org/Submit-Your-Science. In addition, don't miss out on Early Bird Registration. ACC members can save up to $450 if registered by Oct. 24. Note: The College has been notified of unofficial housing sites posting information about ACC.19. To protect your information, only use the official ACC.19 site at ACCScientificSession.org to register.

Fall Favorites?

Staying physically active can play an important role in physician well-being by helping to reduce stress, maintain or improve cardiovascular health and/or serve as a time to connect with family, friends or oneself. However, it can be tough to carve out time with all the demands placed on a cardiovascular professional's time.

This month Cardiology is challenging readers to get outside and share their favorite Fall photos. Photos can be sent to CardiologyEditor@ACC.org (put "Fall Favorites" in the subject line) or tag @ACCinTouch and use #CardiologyMag on Twitter. Photos will be featured in an online photo gallery in November and select photos will be featured in December Cardiology.

In Memoriam: Ronald G. Victor, MD, FACC

Ronald G. Victor, MD, FACC, renowned hypertension expert and pioneer in barbershop-led hypertension detection and treatment programs and member of ACC for more than 28 years, died Sept. 10 at the age of 66.

Victor completed his undergraduate degree at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY, and his medical degree at Tulane University in his hometown of New Orleans. He completed two residencies at UCLA before completing cardiology fellowships at Duke University, University of Iowa and University of Uppsala in Sweden.

Director of the Hypertension Center at the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute since 2009, Victor is widely recognized in cardiology for his fight against hypertension in the African American community. His most recent barbershop study results, presented as a Late-Breaking Clinical Trial at ACC.18, continues to shape treatment approaches for this population.

By combining barbershop-based health outreach with the delivery of care onsite by a specialty-trained pharmacist, blood pressure was significantly lowered in African American men after just six months.

His first barbershop study found that putting hypertension intervention programs in the estimated 18,000 African American barbershops in the U.S. would result in about 800 fewer heart attacks, 550 fewer strokes and 900 fewer deaths in the first year alone.

Victor served as president of the Association of University Cardiologists and was primary investigator of more than 140 studies. He was a co-author of the textbook Kaplan's Clinical Hypertension. His work has been a powerful example of how programs can reach at-risk populations in their own communities to improve health and reduce health disparities.

In Memoriam: Wolf F. C. Duvernoy, MD, FACC

Wolf F. C. Duvernoy, MD, FACC, past governor of ACC's Michigan Chapter (1993-1996) and a well-known consultative cardiologist and researcher, passed away on Aug. 30 at the age of 83.

Duvernoy was born and raised in Stuttgart, Germany. He received his medical degree in 1959 at the University of Tübingen. He completed both his internal medicine residency and his cardiology fellowship at Henry Ford Hospital. In 1975, Duvernoy relocated to Providence Hospital in Southfield, MI, where he practiced cardiology for 26 years, 16 of which he served as chief of cardiology. In 2001, he joined the faculty at the University of Michigan as a part-time consultative cardiologist. He fully retired in 2010.

"Dr. Duvernoy will be remembered as an effective, engaging, and thoughtful leader," says BOG Chair Akshay Khandelwal, MD, FACC, noting his work to broaden the scope of ACC membership, champion patient access to specialty care and advocating for tort reform.

Duvernoy is survived by his wife Eva Duvernoy and his children, Christian and Claire Duvernoy, MD, FACC, also a former governor of ACC's Michigan Chapter and an incoming member of the College's Board of Trustees.

ACC Ranks #20 Among Best Places to Work in Healthcare

The official rankings are in and the ACC is 20th among all health care suppliers as a best place to work, according to Modern Healthcare.

The "Best Places to Work in Healthcare" list annually recognizes outstanding employers in the health care industry on a national level in the categories of supplier and provider/insurer.

The award assessment process is based on an employer policies and practice questionnaire as well as an employee engagement and satisfaction survey.

This is the College's third year to secure a spot on the list, with its rankings continuing to climb.