Group Health co-op sending custom medical messages at birthday time

This is one birthday greeting that's definitely not from Hallmark: medical advice customized for your personal health.

In a novel effort to prod patients into better health, Group Health Cooperative on Monday will begin sending most of its 527,000 members in Washington annual "outreach" letters around their big days, urging them to watch their blood pressure, curb their cholesterol, even get stool tests and mammograms. The letters will be based on information automatically culled from their electronic medical records.

"We're not trying to be patronizing," said Eleanor Bell, the co-op's director of performance assessment. "Evidence shows that patient outreach does engage patients in seeking out the care they need."

Some Group Health members say they would welcome the letters as a reminder of ways to stay in good health. Others aren't so sure.

"This is overkill — they can call me if I need a test," said William "Shawn" Land of Seattle's Queen Anne neighborhood.

If Group Health really cared, he quipped, "send me a drink."

"Tools you need"

In return for a modest investment in postage, executives at Group Health, the state's third-largest health plan, say they expect members to improve their health — and ultimately lower their treatment costs. The campaign is among the first in the nation by a health plan to issue regular, detailed medical summaries as a way to prevent chronic diseases such as diabetes and heart disease.

The first recipients will be 2,000 randomly chosen members whose birthdays fall in the first week of May. Group Health plans to gradually increase the mailings until it reaches 8,500 letters a week by the end of May.

"As your doctor," the letters announce, "I want to make sure you have the information and tools you need to help you live a healthier life."

Then the two-page letters will list recommended tests, such as for colon or breast cancer, based on the members' age, gender and health, and the dates of their last screenings. Patients will also get customized medical advice. That might include specific target levels for blood pressure and cholesterol. They will be reminded to get their flu shots. Or quit smoking. Or keep taking their prescribed medications.

Parents will receive letters for their children up to age 17, which will include schedules for well-child visits and immunizations.

Not everyone will be among the chosen. About 15 percent of the 527,000 members in Washington — many of them young, healthy adult men — won't receive letters because they do not need any screenings or tests.

Split opinions

How effective it might be remains to be seen. Research has shown that many Americans would rather pop pills than change bad habits. For instance, eating too much salt raises blood pressure and risk of stroke. Yet a typical American consumes 50 percent more salt than federal guidelines advise.

Connie Phelps, 81, said she already receives occasional alerts from Group Health, such as for regular mammograms. Still, an annual reminder of ways to stay well would be helpful, she said.

"When you get to my age, you need to know these things," said Phelps, who lives on Capitol Hill.

But Land says Group Health should just keep its stamp money. At 42, he has chronic high blood pressure and a severe sensitivity to light. He regularly e-mails questions to his Group Health doctors.

If they have something important to tell him, he says, he'd rather hear it straight: "My doctor told me, 'Hey, you're too fat.' "

Kyung Song: 206-464-2423 or ksong@seattletimes.com