👋Tell us about you
Tell us about you
A few quick questions help us tailor your journey and surface the next Prepared Patient course you'd benefit from. Saved on this device only. Future versions will sync from your medical record (FHIR Condition import).
🩺 Other conditions you have (alongside HTN)
Check any that apply. We'll recommend matching Prepared Patient courses below.
💛 Someone you care about
Caring for a loved one with another illness or condition? We'll point you at Prepared Family Member content that helps you support them.
Future state: when FHIR Condition import is live, this section will pre-populate from your medical record. You'll always be able to edit.
🎯Your Next Goals
Your Next Goals
Each Prepared Patient course is built like this one — 10 evidence-based competencies, the same Force Field framework, certification at the end. Finish your HTN course; then pick the next one that matches you (or the person you care for).
📍Local to You
Local to You
Your hypertension journey lives in a place. Enter your ZIP and we'll pull regional HTN resources — the cardiology center nearest you, AHA chapter, BP screening events, DASH-friendly food access, mental health, and pharmacy support — curated through the FFH PHIT (Population Health Intelligence Tracker) network. Edit any line; we save it on this device.
PHIT data: clinic locations from HRSA + CMS · environmental context from EPA AirNow · food access from USDA · social vulnerability from CDC SVI · FFH-curated AHA chapter & community partner programs.
🏅Your Path to Certification
Your Path to Certification
Earn your way up three evidence-based tiers. Each builds on the last. Finish all three and receive your Certified Prepared Patient · Hypertension badge and printable certificate, recognized across the FFH Network.
Aware · Identity: Self-Advocate
You know your numbers and your disease. Layer 1 — Condition Literacy.
- Complete Modules 1–4 (Condition Literacy)
- Pass the "Know My HTN" quizzes (≥4/5 each)
- Identify your stage and your goal BP
- Build a 7-day home BP log + lifestyle plan
Active · Identity: Care Team Member
You partner with your team and navigate the system. Layer 2 — Care & System Literacy.
- Complete Modules 5–7 (Home monitoring · Red flags · Comorbidity awareness)
- Demonstrate teach-back on your med regimen
- Complete one "great visit" prep + debrief with home BP log
- Build your When-to-Call plan + Care Team card
- Recognize the diabetes/CKD/sleep apnea/SCD intersections that change your plan
Certified Prepared Patient · Identity: Ambassador
You teach, mentor, fight stigma, and shape research & policy. Layer 3 — Advocacy & Ambassadorship.
- Complete Modules 8–10 (Family/Team · Sharing · Mastery)
- Teach a family member their numbers OR present at a community event
- Sign the Prepared Patient Pledge
- Generate & share your Health Passport + 2-week BP log
- Submit one advocacy action (employer wellness, AHA volunteer, policy comment, or peer mentor)
📋Master Pre / Post Assessment
Where You Stand — Confidence Before & After
Seven dimensions of being a Prepared Patient. Answer once at the start of your journey and again at the end. Your goal is to see real growth across understanding, self-management, communication, and optimal utilization — knowing when to call your team, when to use Day Hospital, and when to go to the ER. Your answers stay on this device unless you choose to share with your clinician.
📈 Your Pre→Post Growth
📞Know Who to Call — Before the ER
Know Who to Call — Before the ER
For most non-life-threatening HTN events, your team can help faster than the ER and prevent unnecessary admissions. Save these numbers in your phone today. The numbers below are placeholders — your institution will fill in the right ones for you. Hypertensive emergency (BP ≥180/120 + chest pain, severe headache, vision change, weakness, breathing trouble) = always 911.
🚨 Hypertensive Emergency: BP ≥180/120 WITH symptoms — call 911
If your home BP reads ≥180/120 and you have chest pain, severe headache, vision change, weakness/numbness, confusion, or trouble breathing — call 911. This is a hypertensive emergency. Do not drive yourself. Bring your Health Passport (or have a family member bring it).
⚠️ Hypertensive Urgency: BP ≥180/120 with NO symptoms — call team same day
Rest 5 minutes, repeat the reading correctly. If still ≥180/120 and you feel okay, call [Primary Care On-Call: (555) 222-9000] or [Cardiology RN line: (555) 222-9100]. They will direct you to clinic, urgent care, or ED. Don't wait for tomorrow.
💬 Routine questions, refills, scheduling, BP log review
Use [MyChart portal] first — most messages answered within 1 business day. For meds about to run out, call [Pharmacy line: (555) 222-9050]. Send your 2-week home BP log via portal before any med-change visit.
🚑 Call 911 right away for any of these
Sudden weakness on one side · trouble speaking · vision change · chest pain or trouble breathing · fainting · a painful erection lasting > 4 hours (priapism) · severe headache. These can be stroke, acute chest syndrome, or other emergencies — don't drive yourself.
📚The 10 Prepared Patient Competencies
A Prepared Patient builds three kinds of health literacy — and grows into three identities. Each competency works through the FFH three pillars: Learn It · Live It · Share It.
Advocate for Self
You speak up for your own care, plan, pain, and goals.
Care Team Member
You partner with your team — not above, not below.
Ambassador
You teach, mentor, and shape research, policy & access.
📖 Condition Literacy Learn It · Tier 1 Aware
"I know my numbers and what they mean." The foundation. Without this, nothing else holds.
What HTN Is & Why It Matters
The silent killer. Stages (1, 2, crisis), the four target organs (brain, heart, kidney, eye), and why early control prevents most strokes and heart attacks.
Knowing My Numbers
Diagnosis is averages, not snapshots. Goal BP. Home cuff technique. White coat vs masked HTN. The 7-day log routine.
Lifestyle Force Field
DASH-style eating, sodium <2300 mg, 150 min/week movement, sleep + sleep apnea, stress & breathing skills, alcohol moderation, weight.
Medications & Adherence
5 main drug classes (ACE/ARB, CCB, thiazide, beta-blocker, others). Most need 2+. Side effects to call about. Adherence = the #1 lever you control.
🛠 Action & System Literacy Live It · Tier 2 Active
"I monitor at home, I know when to call, I see comorbidities." Where most preventable ER visits and readmissions happen — and where this course pays off the most. Optimal utilization lives here.
Home Monitoring
The validated upper-arm cuff. The 7-day log. The portal upload. Trend reading: what a single high reading means vs a pattern.
When to Call vs Go to ED
Hypertensive urgency (≥180/120, no symptoms — call team) vs hypertensive emergency (≥180/120 + symptoms — 911). FAST stroke check. The difference saves lives.
When SCD & HTN Meet — Stroke-Risk Story
The cross-condition module. SCD damages small vessels; HTN damages all vessels. Together — especially in African American patients — they produce the highest preventable-stroke burden in U.S. populations.
📣 Family, Sharing & Mastery Share It · Tier 3 Certified
"I bring my family with me. I teach others. I close the loop with my care team." This is what turns a Prepared Patient into a force multiplier for the whole community.
Family & Care Team
Build your team: PCP, cardiology if needed, RN care manager, pharmacist, dietitian, behavioral health, sleep medicine, peer mentor. Save numbers. Know who handles what.
Sharing — Family, Partner, Employer
Talk to your kids and partner about their numbers. Run a home-BP coffee hour. Speak with HR about workplace wellness. Mentor a newly-diagnosed neighbor. Your story changes outcomes.
Mastery & Graduation
Recap, badge, ROI study opt-in. Reflect on Pre→Post. Set your 12-month plan: a healthy home BP target, your team check-ins, your advocacy commitment.
🫀Form & Function — Hypertension in 3D
Form & Function — Hypertension in 3D
Hypertension is a vascular disease — high pressure inside your arteries. Most people feel nothing, but the pressure quietly damages the four target organs over years: brain · heart · kidneys · eyes. Knowing the geography of your own body makes every other module make sense.
🧠 Brain
Pressure damages small penetrating arteries → silent strokes, cognitive decline, and full strokes. 10 mm Hg drop in systolic BP cuts stroke risk ~27%.
❤️ Heart
Heart muscle thickens against high pressure → left-ventricular hypertrophy → heart failure, MI risk. Reversible early; permanent late.
🫘 Kidneys
Tiny filtering vessels (glomeruli) damaged by pressure → albumin leaks into urine (the earliest sign) → eGFR falls → CKD → dialysis if untreated.
👁 Eyes
Retinal arterioles are the only artery a doctor can see directly. HTN narrows them, causes hemorrhages, and threatens vision. Annual dilated exam.
💡 How we manage it (the through-line)
Three levers in this order: (1) Lifestyle Force Field — DASH-style eating, sodium <2300 mg/day, 150 min/week movement, sleep + sleep apnea screen, weight, alcohol moderation, stress skills. (2) Medications — most people need 2+ from the 5 main classes (ACE/ARB, CCB, thiazide, beta-blocker, others). (3) Home BP monitoring — your 7-day average is the number that drives every decision. Together these protect the four target organs above.
🧰Training Lab — Devices & Techniques
Training Lab — Devices & Techniques
Hands-on practice with the devices and techniques every Prepared Patient · Hypertension eventually masters: validated upper-arm BP cuff, the 7-day home BP log routine, sodium-budget label-reading, slow-breathing for acute spikes, and (if applicable) at-home ambulatory BP monitoring. Each skill follows the FFH 5-step rhythm — Introduce → Coach → Practice → Train → Test.
This section is in active development — the FFH Training Lab is being purpose-built to host HTN device training (and every other condition's). When it lands, this slot will surface the full hands-on lab inline. For now, talk to your team about the device skills you'll need to master and we'll have them queued up here shortly.
👥My Care Team
👥My Care Team
Your team is bigger than just the doctor. Click any card to edit, or click the + tile to add a new team member. Saved on this device. The Force Field Emergency Card below auto-syncs from this list.
📖Glossary — words you'll hear
Plain-English definitions for terms doctors and labs use. Tap to expand.
Stage 1 / Stage 2 hypertension
Hypertensive crisis (urgency vs emergency)
ACE inhibitor / ARB
Calcium-channel blocker (CCB)
Thiazide diuretic
White-coat HTN / Masked HTN
DASH eating plan
Validated upper-arm cuff
Resistant hypertension
SCD × HTN comorbidity
🧪Vitals & Labs Tutor — what your numbers mean
Vitals & Labs Tutor — what your numbers mean
Don't just see a number — know what it means and what to ask. Your "normal" may be different from a friend's. Ask your clinician to write your personal baseline in the column on the right. The home BP average is the single highest-leverage number on this page — bring your 7-day log to every visit.
| Test | What it measures | Typical adult range | What to ask if it's off | My baseline |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home BP — 7-day average | The number that actually drives diagnosis & med decisions (not the single clinic reading). | Goal < 130/80 for most adults; < 140/90 if frail / older / specific comorbidities | Are we at goal? If not, what's our plan over the next 4 weeks? | [fill in] |
| Clinic BP | In-office reading — useful but can be falsely high (white-coat) or falsely low (masked). | Compare against your home log to detect white-coat / masked HTN | Does my clinic reading match my home log? | [fill in] |
| A1c (HbA1c) | 3-month blood sugar average — screens for diabetes, a major HTN comorbidity. | < 5.7% normal · 5.7–6.4% prediabetes · ≥ 6.5% diabetes | If prediabetes/diabetes — does this change my BP target or meds? | [fill in] |
| Lipid panel (LDL, HDL, Trigs) | Cardiovascular-risk markers that combine with HTN. | LDL < 100 mg/dL (< 70 if known CVD); HDL > 40 (M) / > 50 (F); Trigs < 150 | Given my BP + lipids, what's my 10-year ASCVD risk? Statin? | [fill in] |
| Creatinine / eGFR | Kidney function. HTN damages kidneys; kidney disease worsens HTN. | eGFR > 90 normal · 60–89 mild ↓ · 30–59 moderate CKD | Is my kidney function stable? Should I avoid NSAIDs? | [fill in] |
| Urine albumin/creatinine ratio (UACR) | Earliest sign of kidney damage from HTN — long before creatinine rises. | < 30 mg/g normal · 30–300 microalbuminuria · > 300 macroalbuminuria | If elevated — should I be on an ACE/ARB even if BP is okay? | [fill in] |
| Potassium (K⁺) | Critical electrolyte. Thiazides & loop diuretics lower it; ACE/ARB & spironolactone raise it. | 3.5–5.0 mEq/L | If on a diuretic — am I getting enough K? If on ACE/ARB — is K trending up? | [fill in] |
| Sodium (Na⁺) | Reflects fluid status; can drop on thiazides especially in older adults. | 135–145 mEq/L | Is my Na stable on this med combo? | [fill in] |
| Fasting glucose | Companion to A1c for diabetes screening. | < 100 mg/dL normal · 100–125 prediabetes · ≥ 126 diabetes | Should I be screened more often given my BP? | [fill in] |
| TSH | Thyroid function — both hyper- and hypothyroid can drive secondary HTN. | ~0.4–4.0 mIU/L (lab-dependent) | Could thyroid be contributing to my BP? | [fill in] |
| Sleep apnea screen | OSA is one of the most common reversible causes of resistant HTN. | STOP-BANG ≥ 3 → consider sleep study | Should I get a sleep study before adding another BP med? | [fill in] |
➕Add-On Modules & Earnable Badges
➕Add-On Modules & Earnable Badges
Stackable modules that match your situation. Complete one to earn an extra badge on your certificate. Your institution can add their own.
🤰 Pregnancy & HTN
Preeclampsia screening, safe BP meds in pregnancy (and the ones to stop), home BP monitoring schedule, postpartum BP surveillance.
🌡 Resistant HTN
BP not at goal on 3+ meds. Workup checklist: adherence, sodium, sleep apnea, primary aldosteronism, renal artery stenosis, NSAIDs/decongestants.
👴 Older Adult: SBP <130 vs <140
Frailty, falls, orthostasis. When tighter is better, when looser is safer, what to ask your team about your personal target.
🩺 Secondary HTN Screening
When to look beyond essential HTN: primary aldosteronism, sleep apnea, thyroid, renal artery stenosis, pheochromocytoma. The cases worth catching.
✈️ Travel with BP Meds
Time-zone dosing, packing meds in carry-on, monitoring abroad, altitude effects, refill strategies.
🏃 Exercise & HTN
Safe ramp-up, what to avoid (heavy isometrics if uncontrolled), the 150-min/week target, when to check before/after, when to stop.
🍽 The Sodium-Budget Skill
How to actually live under 2300 mg/day in a real kitchen and a real life. Label-reading, restaurant ordering, the top-10 hidden-salt traps.
👨👩👧 For Family & Caregivers
How to support BP at home, when to step in, when to call, when to drive to the ED. Pairs with the Prepared Family Member · HTN course (in development).
+ Add Your Institution's Module
Drop in your own — local pharmacy program, community blood-pressure stations, hospital-specific care pathway, anything.
🛡️Force Field Emergency Card — fridge · wallet · EMT-ready
🛡️ Force Field Emergency Card FRIDGE · WALLET · EMT-READY
A one-page emergency record for any EMT, ER, new doctor, or transition visit. Print one for the fridge, one for your wallet. Updates anytime. This is the document you hand to a stranger when you can't speak for yourself.
🤝 My Care Team — call list for any clinician picking up my care
📘My Health Passport — visit log · questions · trackers
📘 My Health Passport PATIENT-OWNED JOURNAL
This is your record — not your hospital's. Log every visit, capture every question for next time, and watch your own trends. Many of you get care at more than one hospital, on more than one record system. This Passport travels with you. Future versions will let you import data directly from your patient portals (the "Blue Button" vision).
🩺Working With a Prepared Patient
Your patient is going through a structured, evidence-based course. Here's how to get the most out of every visit, reduce ER use, and partner well. Built on the AHRQ SHARE Approach, the IOM teach-back method, and the 2014 NHLBI & 2020 ASH SCD guidelines.
The SHARE Approach — your 5-step playbook
Use these steps in any order. Cycle back. Use teach-back at every transition. Source: AHRQ Pub. No. 25-0005 (Oct 2024).
💬Teach-Back & Risk Communication
The two highest-yield, lowest-cost SDM techniques. Use both at every visit.
🔁 Teach-Back (1–2 min)
- "Just so I know I explained it well — what would you tell your sister about why we're starting hydroxyurea?"
- Open-ended ("what" / "how"), not yes/no.
- If they get it wrong: "I must not have explained it well — let me try a different way." Then teach-back again.
- Use it for: pain plan, hydroxyurea ramp-up, when to call you vs ER, fever rule, port-flush technique.
- Document teach-back in your note — it's a quality measure and a billable element of care.
🔢 Communicating Numbers
- Use absolute risk, not relative. "13 out of 100" beats "13%" beats "1 in 8" beats "low risk."
- Keep denominators & timeframes constant when comparing options.
- Show, don't tell: icon arrays, Wong-Baker FACES, written summary.
- For lab numbers: give the action threshold, not just the value. "Your ferritin is 1,200 — over 1,000 we usually start iron removal."
⚠️SCD-Specific Clinical Guardrails
Do these every visit. Skipping them is the most common reason a Prepared Patient ends up in the ER.
🟢 Every Visit Checklist
- Confirm hydroxyurea dose & HbF goal; ramp to MTD if labs allow.
- Pain plan: home opioid script, when to escalate, no NSAIDs if GFR < 60.
- Pneumococcal, meningococcal (ACWY + B), influenza, COVID, Hib up to date.
- Eye exam yearly (proliferative retinopathy — esp. HbSC).
- BP and urine albumin every visit; ACE/ARB if > 30 mg/g.
- Mental health screen (PHQ-2/9 + GAD-7); pain ≠ depression but they coexist.
🚨 Red-Flag Triage Patients Should Know
- Fever ≥ 101°F → assess within 1 hour (CBC, blood culture, broad-spectrum if criteria met).
- Pain + cough/fever/low O₂ → CXR, sat, transfuse threshold, incentive spirometry.
- Sudden focal weakness, speech, vision → stroke pathway; transfuse to HbS < 30%.
- Priapism > 4 hours → urgent urology + IV fluids + analgesia.
- Pediatric: spleen palpable / pale / lethargic → splenic sequestration.
🌍Cultural Competence & Trust
SCD disproportionately affects Black, Hispanic, Mediterranean, Middle Eastern, and South Asian communities. Many patients have been under-treated or accused of drug-seeking. Repair starts in your office.
- Start with belief. Pain is what the patient says it is. SCD pain is real, severe, and often poorly treated.
- Ask about their model. "What do you think causes a crisis for you? What do you think helps?" Use that language.
- Use qualified medical interpreters — never family, never minor children except in true emergencies.
- Invite the family in. Decisions about transition, transplant, gene therapy, fertility, pregnancy are family decisions in many cultures.
- Name the bias. "I know SCD patients have often been doubted in ERs. We track that here, and you can tell me if it ever happens."
🏥Customize for Your Institution
Clone this course and replace the highlighted blocks with your own information. Each editable field below is a placeholder — change it once and it propagates through the patient view.
📞 What Should Replace the When-to-Call Block
- 24/7 hematology on-call number
- Day Hospital / SCD infusion clinic hours & address
- Specialty pharmacy line
- Behavioral health / crisis line
- Patient portal login URL
👤 Who Is Your "Susan"?
- Name, role, photo, calendly/booking link.
- What teach-back / device check-ins they own (port flushing, infusion pump, hydroxyurea ramp).
- How patients reach them between visits.
📚 Add Your Own Modules
- Your clinical trial protocols (chemo ed, gene therapy run-up).
- Local 504 plan template, school-letter template.
- Insurance & financial-aid pathways.
- Local peer support partners (e.g., 360 SCD Hub, SCD Foundation Arizona).
🎨 Re-skin in 2 Lines of CSS
--inst-primary: your brand color- Replace the FFH × 360 SCD Hub × [Your Institution] cobrand pill in the hero
- Drop in your logo PNG (white version) — same 48px height as FFH logo
📚 Evidence Base — what this course is built on
- AHRQ SHARE Approach — 5-step shared decision making framework. AHRQ Pub. 25-0005, Oct 2024. ahrq.gov/sdm
- AHRQ Health Literacy Universal Precautions Toolkit (3rd ed.) — teach-back, plain language, accessible materials. AHRQ Pub. 23-0075, March 2024.
- NHLBI Evidence-Based Management of SCD: Expert Panel Report (2014) — preventive screening, hydroxyurea, transfusion, infection prevention.
- ASH 2020 Guidelines for SCD — pain (acute & chronic), cerebrovascular disease, transfusion support, stem-cell transplant.
- AHRQ PEMAT — Patient Education Materials Assessment Tool. Used to grade understandability & actionability.
- Stanford Chronic Disease Self-Management Program (CDSMP) — peer-led, self-efficacy backbone of the Tier 3 advocacy work.
- AHRQ Patient Activation Measure (PAM) — the "Aware → Active → Certified" ladder maps to PAM levels 1–4.
- 360 SCD Hub (360scdhub.org) — community partner content, peer mentors, regional resource connections.
- FFH Prepared Patient · Asthma course — sister course in the FFH Academy; this build mirrors its structure for series consistency.
Course content is educational and not a substitute for medical advice from your own clinicians. Institutions cloning this course are responsible for accuracy of all customized blocks.