BayCare Medical Group Receives Three Gold Awards from the American Heart Association

CLEARWATER, Fla., (Nov. 22, 2021) – BayCare Medical Group (BMG), the largest multispecialty physician group in the Tampa Bay area, received three gold awards from the American Heart Association in recognition of the group’s commitment to reducing the risk of heart disease and stroke. 

BMG is the first physician group in the region to achieve three gold awards. 

“This recognition highlights our team’s commitment to helping our patients reduce their risk of heart disease and stroke through improving high cholesterol, managing blood pressure and controlling type 2 diabetes,” said Andrew Fink, MD, President of BayCare Medical Group. “We are proud of our physicians and team members who are committed to keeping their patients as healthy as possible.”

BayCare Medical Group received the following achievement awards: 

• Check. Change. Control. Cholesterol™ Gold
• Target: Type 2 Diabetes℠ Gold
• Target: BP™ Gold recognition from both the American Heart Association and the American Medical Association (AMA) 

Check. Change. Control. Cholesterol™ focuses on addressing high cholesterol through atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) risk assessment and appropriate therapies. To earn gold, an organization must have 70% or more of their adult, at-risk ASCVD patient population appropriately managed with statin therapy. 

Target: Type 2 Diabetes is an initiative created by the American Heart Association to raise awareness of the link between cardiovascular disease and diabetes and to empower patients and caregivers to better manage diabetes. BMG earned the Target: Type 2 Diabetes Gold for its commitment to improving quality of care for patients with type 2 diabetes by adopting clinical change and using evidence-based strategies and tools.

The Target: BP Gold award recognizes BMG’s commitment to helping adult patients who suffer from hypertension keep it under control. To earn Gold, practices must submit data showing at least 70 percent of its adult patients with hypertension keep it under control.

Nearly half of all adults in the U.S. have experienced some form of cardiovascular disease – including heart attack, stroke and heart failure. Leading risk factors for cardiovascular disease include high cholesterol, type 2 diabetes, and uncontrolled high blood pressure, but through proper risk factor diagnosis and treatment, heart disease and stroke can be prevented or managed. 

“BayCare Medical Group is honored to be recognized by the American Heart Association for our dedication to helping our patients have the resources to manage risk factors and hopefully reduce or avoid heart attacks, stroke and other preventable heart concerns,” said Dr. Fink. “Programs that address the real-world problems of high blood pressure, high cholesterol and uncontrolled type 2 diabetes are necessary to improve health today and avoid larger problems for many patients tomorrow.”

About BayCare Medical Group
BayCare Medical Group is Tampa Bay's leading multi-specialty group providing primary and specialty care throughout the Tampa Bay and west central Florida regions. As part of the BayCare Health System, these passionate and compassionate physicians extend the mission of BayCare to provide extraordinary care for every patient, every time, everywhere. For more information, visit www.BayCareMedicalGroup.org.  

About BayCare Health System
BayCare is a leading not-for-profit health care system that connects individuals and families to a wide range of services at 15 hospitals and hundreds of other convenient locations throughout the Tampa Bay and central Florida regions. Inpatient and outpatient services include acute care, primary care, imaging, laboratory, behavioral health, home care, and wellness. Our mission is to improve the health of all we serve through community-owned, health care services that set the standard for high-quality, compassionate care. For more information, visit www.BayCare.org. 

About Target: BPTM
Target: BP is a national collaboration between the AHA and the AMA aimed at reducing the number of Americans who suffer from heart attacks and strokes each year by urging physician practices, health systems and patients to prioritize BP control. The initiative aims to help health care organizations improve blood pressure control rates through use of AMA MAP BP™ evidence-based protocol, and recognizes organizations committed to improving blood pressure control. 

About Check. Change. Control. Cholesterol™
The American Heart Association, the world’s leading voluntary organization dedicated to building longer, healthier lives, created the Check. Change. Control. Cholesterol™ initiative with national support from Amgen to improve awareness, detection and management of high cholesterol for consumers, patients and health care professionals.  

About Target: Type 2 Diabetes SM
The American Heart Association, the world’s leading voluntary organization dedicated to building longer, healthier lives, created the Target: Type 2 Diabetes™ initiative as a part of the Know Diabetes by Heart™ effort to raise awareness and understanding of the link between diabetes and cardiovascular disease among patients, caregivers and health care professionals as well as empower patients and care givers to better manage risk factors. The Target: Type 2 Diabetes program supports physicians and care teams by offering access to the latest research, tools and resources to provide the latest cardiovascular and type 2 diabetes management and treatment guidelines.