Community-based health education programs may be helpful in improving health outcomes in patients with chronic illnesses. This study aimed to evaluate community-based health education strategies in the management of hypertensive patients with low socioeconomic status in Dongguan City, China.
Methods
This was a randomized, non-blinded trial involving 360 hypertensive patients enrolled in the community health service centre of Liaobu Town, Dongguan City, China. Participants were randomized to receive one of the three community-based health education programs over 2 years: self-learning reading [Group 1], monthly regular didactic lecture [Group 2], monthly interactive education workshop [Group 3]. Outcomes included the changes in the proportion of subjects with normalized blood pressure [BP], hypertension-related knowledge score, adherence to antihypertensive treatment, lifestyle, body mass index and serum lipids.
Results
After the 2-y intervention, the proportion of subjects with normalized BP increased significantly in Group 2 [from 41.2% to 63.2%, p