Lipids, Learning, and Lifestyle: Improving Cholesterol Levels in a Rural Health Clinic through Enhanced Care-Coordinator Education

Having high cholesterol levels raises the risk for heart disease, the leading cause of death in the United States. High cholesterol is considered a silent preventable condition. Uncontrolled cholesterol levels increase health disparities experienced by patients of low-socioeconomic status. The purpose of this quality improvement (QI) project is to determine the effect of an evidence-based cholesterol education program in enhancing hyperlipidemia management strategies among Care Coordinators at a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC). The overall goal of the project is to improve patient’s cholesterol levels over a 3-month period. This project supports the implementation of enhanced hyperlipidemia education for Care Coordinators based on a literature review and national hyperlipidemia guidelines. The Lipids, Learning and Lifestyle (LLL) program was created by the project leader and delivered in a train-the-trainer approach to the Care Coordinators at the FQHC. The project leader administered a modified Hypertension Knowledge-Level Scale (HK-LS) questionnaire to Care Coordinators before and after the training sessions, and score results were compared. A total of 10 patients were given the enhanced education by Care Coordinators, in individual sessions attended by the project leader. The patient’s pre and post-intervention cholesterol levels were compared to determine the impact of the educational program. Results from the modified HK-LS did show a statistically significant change in mean scores from pre intervention to post-intervention, revealing an overall improvement in knowledge about hyperlipidemia management. Review of the patient data showed there was no statistically significant improvement in Total Cholesterol (t(10)=1.60, p=.14), HDL (t(10)=-.69, p=.51), Triglycerides (t(10)=1.71, p=.12) or LDL (t(10)=.23, p=.82), from pre-intervention to post-intervention. Though there was no statistically significant improvement in overall Cholesterol levels for the patient participants, there was a statistically significant improvement in Care Coordinator knowledge about hyperlipidemia management.