Workshop 3: 2025 Australian guideline for the diagnosis and management of hypertension
Tracks
Track 3
| Tuesday, December 9, 2025 |
| 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM |
| Hall C Lower Section |
Overview
Note: This workshop is included in the Hypertension Taskforce Summit but is open for attendance by all interested participants.
Details
Heart Foundation in partnership with Stroke Foundation and with input from Hypertension Australia as a key contributor, are updating the new Australian Guideline for the Diagnosis and Management of Hypertension. The first integrated module will cover diagnostic thresholds, treatment initiation thresholds, treatment goals, measurement, first-line pharmacological therapy and behavioural and lifestyle interventions.
34 per cent of Australian adults have hypertension, yet only 32 per cent of these individuals achieve adequate blood pressure control, a rate unchanged for over a decade. The National Hypertension Taskforce's Roadmap highlighted the critical need for updated Australian hypertension guidelines and up-to-date, simple blood pressure management tools for healthcare professionals. The new guideline aims to address these challenges by providing updated, evidence-based recommendations tailored to Australia’s healthcare needs.
This workshop aims to cover the rigorous guideline development methodology, the progress to date on the guidelines and facilitate discussion on the latest evidence on contentious topics. It will cover guideline implementation to support health professional’s turn best practice guidelines into everyday practice. It will also highlight the framework for hypertension guidelines collaboration between Hypertension Canada and Hypertension Australia, a new, novel, and efficient model for collaboration between countries.
Don't miss this opportunity to hear from members of the Co-Chairs of the Expert Steering Group and discover what’s new in the guideline.
Speaker
Professor Markus Schlaich
Dobney Chair In Clinical Research
Royal Perth Hospital - University of Western Australia
Presenter
Biography
Prof Markus Schlaich is a renal physician and a European Society of Hypertension (ESH) accredited hypertension specialist. Markus is Chair of Hypertension Australia and Co-Chair of the National Hypertension Taskforce. He has a strong background in clinical research with a focus on the pathophysiology of hypertension, the role of the sympathetic nervous system, involvement of the kidneys, and hypertension mediated organ damage. He has a specific interest in treatment modalities targeting the sympathetic nervous system and has been a pioneer of renal denervation and other interventional approaches. He has authored more than 475 articles in peer reviewed journals and serves on the Editorial Board of Hypertension, Journal of Hypertension, and Hypertension Research.
Dr Dannii Dougherty
Head Of Clinical Evidence
Heart Foundation
Presenter
Biography
Dr Dannii Dougherty is Head of Clinical Evidence at the Heart Foundation, an affiliate associate lecturer in the School of Public Health at the University of Adelaide and has taught evidence-based practice and systematic review methodology at the University of South Australia.
With more than a decade of experience in evidence-based medicine, guideline methodology and knowledge translation, Dr Dougherty holds a PhD in Medicine and advocates for rigorous, transparent evidence to strengthen cardiovascular care and policy across Australia.
Prof Garry Jennings AO
Chief Medical Advisor
Heart Foundation
Presenter
Biography
Professor Garry Jennings AO is Chief Medical Advisor of the Heart Foundation, a cardiologist at the Baker Institute where he was Director and CEO of from 2001–15, and Honorary Professor of Medicine at the University of Sydney and Monash. He is Deputy Chair of the Global Cardiovascular Research Funders Forum.
His previous positions include Executive Director of Sydney Health Partners, Director of Cardiology and Chair Division of Medicine of the Alfred Hospital, Melbourne and National CEO of the Heart Foundation. He serves on several public and private Company Boards, Trusts and Foundations.
A cardiologist, over 700 of his publications have been cited more than 40,000 times on subjects ranging from prevention, pathophysiology and treatment of cardiovascular disease to aboriginal health and health policy.
Prof Ross Tsuyuki
Professor Of Medicine (cardiology)
University of Alberta
Presenter
Biography
Dr. Ross Tsuyuki is a Professor of Medicine (Cardiology) and Director of the EPICORE Centre (a health research coordinating centre) at the University of Alberta and is the Editor-in-Chief of the Canadian Pharmacists Journal. Having previously served on Hypertension Canada’s Board of Directors, Dr. Tsuyuki was elected in 2019 and appointed Vice-President. He also serves as a Chair of the Education & Implementation Committee and is a member of the Hypertension Canada Guidelines Committee.
Dr. Tsuyuki’s interests are in clinical trials design and execution, hypertension, heart failure, community practice-based research, cardiovascular risk factors, and in the provision of support for clinical researchers through the EPIRCORE Centre. Dr. Tsuyuki has received several awards for teaching, as well as an appointment as a Fellow of the Canadian Society of Hospital Pharmacists, the American College of Cardiology and the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences. In 2005, he was recognized as the Canadian Pharmacist of the Year by the Canadian Pharmacists Association and the International Society of Hypertension.
Chair & Presenter
Garry Jennings AO
Chief Medical Advisor
Heart Foundation
