The study used a patient-centered, culturally tailored, education and activation intervention with active follow-up delivered by a community health worker in the clinic. It also included a computerized, self-study communication skills training program delivered via an interactive CD-ROM, with tailored feedback to address physicians' individual communication skills needs. Fifty physicians and 500 of their patients who had uncontrolled hypertension were recruited into a randomized controlled trial with a 2X2 factorial design. The 50 physicians were randomized to receive either a 2-hour CD-ROM based communication skills training or no training. Within each randomized physician, 10 patient-subjects were randomized to either minimal intervention or patient activation (community health worker visit and follow-up calls, plus photo novels and other mailed educational literature). Assessments of primary care appointment keeping, medication possession, medication taking, health status, satisfaction, and numerous other variables were made at baseline, 3 months, and 12 months.