2026 Eastern States Conference

Title: 
Impact of pharmacist participation on timeliness of blood pressure management in spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage 
 
Authors:  
Andy Bryan, Haijing Tran, Andrea D’Souza, DeAngelo Price, Imran Chughtai 
 
Objectives: 
At the conclusion of this presentation, the participants will be able to describe the impact of pharmacist participation on the timeliness of acute blood pressure management in patients with spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage. 
 
Self-Assessment Question:  
Which blood pressure target is recommended for patients with mild to moderate spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage and an initial SBP of 150–220 mmHg?  
A. SBP <180 mmHg  
B. SBP 160–180 mmHg
C. SBP 140 mmHg, maintained between 130–150 mmHg
D. SBP <120 mmHg
 
Background: 
Early systolic blood pressure (SBP) reduction improves outcomes in spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage. Guidelines recommend rapid lowering to a target of 140 mmHg (maintain 130–150 mmHg). This study evaluates pharmacist impact on timeliness of BP control. 
 
Methods: 
This interventional cohort study includes adults aged 18 years or older presenting to a single emergency department with spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage confirmed by non‑contrast computed tomography and an initial systolic blood pressure of 150 to 220 millimeters of mercury. The intervention consists of implementation of a standardized antihypertensive treatment protocol, targeted education for physicians and nurses, pharmacy‑based alerting at diagnosis, expedited access to antihypertensive agents, and pharmacist participation in early identification and response. Primary outcomes include time from emergency department arrival to first antihypertensive medication administration and time to achievement of target systolic blood pressure. Secondary outcomes include time to medication order entry, modified Rankin Scale score at discharge, intensive care unit length of stay, and hospital length of stay. Descriptive and inferential statistics will be used for analysis. 
 
Results: 
TBD 
 
Conclusion: 
TBD