Information for health professionals and the wider sector is gradually moving. Until mid-2026, information will either be here, or on our other website — tewhatuora.govt.nz.
Cardiovascular disease risk assessment and management
Reducing people's risk of cardiovascular disease and related events through a cardiovascular disease risk assessment. Managing cardiovascular risk, and the heart health plan pilot programme.
Cardiovascular disease risk assessment
Cardiovascular disease is responsible for almost 1 in 3 deaths in Aotearoa New Zealand. Many of these are premature and preventable. There have been advances in the treatment and prevention of cardiovascular disease. More people are surviving acute events such as heart attacks.
A cardiovascular disease risk assessment (CVDRA) will:
- establish someone as high, moderate or low risk of a cardiovascular event within a specified timeframe
- provide information to people about their risk and how to improve their heart health
- reduce people's risk of cardiovascular disease and cardiovascular events.
These groups should be given a CVDRA:
- Māori, Pacific and South-Asian people — men over 30 and women over 40
- people with known risk factors such as a family history of heart problems, or with high risk of developing diabetes — men over 35 and women over 45
- people with severe mental illness over 25
- people with diabetes — should have an annual check after diagnosis
- all men over 45 and women over 55 (even without risk factors).
A CVDRA should be completed every 1 to 5 years, depending on the person's risk level. People who are high risk or who have diabetes, should be assessed once a year.
CDVRA tool
We provide a national standard cardiovascular disease risk assessment (CVDRA) service in the form of an online tool. This is available to primary and community healthcare providers.
We also support the Heart Foundation's My Heart Check tool for people aged between 30 and 75.
Managing cardiovascular risk
Managing cardiovascular risk should be based on shared decision making with the patient. Decisions should:
- balance the risk of treatment harms with benefits
- make sure the the intensity of interventions are in proportion to the person's estimated combined risk.
It is important to encourage lifestyle interventions to help a person manage their risk, including:
- stopping smoking
- eating well
- regular physical activity
- maintaining a healthy weight.
The 'Cardiovascular disease risk assessment and management for primary care' guide has detailed recommendations.
Cardiovascular disease risk assessment and management for primary care
The 'Journey to wellbeing' website provides additional information on supporting people with long term conditions including cardiovascular disease.
Heart health plan pilot
We have worked with healthcare providers to complete a pilot of a new heart health plan for people who recently had a CVDRA. The results of the pilot are being evaluated to make decisions on the next steps.
The heart health plan is a care planning tool designed to:
- help people understand the outcome of their cardiovascular disease risk assessment
- empower people to take steps and set goals to make behavioural changes to lower their risk of a future cardiovascular event
- help healthcare professionals support people to improve their heart health.
This care planning tool can be used in primary and community care. The process can be led by:
- GPs
- practice nurses
- health coaches
- healthcare assistants
- kaiāwhina.
How the heart health plan works
The heart health plan tool was designed to work with any CVDRA calculator that uses algorithms specific to the New Zealand population. We recommend the CVDRA tool is used to calculate the cardiovascular disease risk score.
Following a CVDRA, a healthcare professional would discuss and work through the heart health plan with the person.
The heart health plan will:
- capture a person's 5-year cardiovascular disease risk level
- summarise points discussed during the CVDRA
- provide some customisable advice on actions that can help to lower overall risk
- record the goals and next steps the person plans to take to support their heart health and lower their risk.
The finished plan is a PDF that you can either print for the person to take away or email to them. This helps people stay on track with managing their cardiovascular disease risk and puts them in charge of their own health goals.
Below is a sample of the template that has been tested with with healthcare and community providers.
Contact us
If you are a healthcare provider and interested in finding out more about the heart health plan, contact our long term conditions team at ltc@health.govt.nz