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Notable New     Yorkers
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Mary LaskerMary Lasker
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ten different communities, for whether or not they had high blood pressure. They chose 11,500, about, in ten different cities, who did have high blood pressure. (cross talk)

Lasker:

They assigned them randomly to clinics. One person was sent to a clinic where they would be followed regularly, and the dosage of their drug changed or adjusted according to their need and where the blood pressure would be taken maybe four times a year.

The next person would be assigned to a hospital - just referred to a hospital or to a doctor, but with no further follow up.

The people that got stepped-up care after five years, that group had 20 percent fewer deaths than the group randomly assigned to a doctor or a hospital without any follow up -- 20 percent fewer deaths!!

Now on a national basis that would be a tremendous decline in deaths.

Q:

Yes, whereas it seems that the other people who were simply referred to a doctor. . .

Lasker:

They weren't getting adequate attention, they didn't get any follow up, they didn't do anything about it, they didn't get any real help, or whatever help they got was not as good as the stepped-up care that was arranged for





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