Hypertension Prevention and Control Presentation

Description of Event

• The theme of the event is “A Chance to Outwit Hypertension: Come one come all”.
• Just as the theme reads, this event gives the community the opportunity to directly deal with hypertension by getting empowered.
• This event will be similar to a community outreach event because it will target persons at the grassroots level.
• This event will involve various activities that will range from education to referrals.
• The event will take a social approach because it will include entertainment, social forums, and games for both young and old.
• This is meant to encourage people to get involved by eliminating the notion that the event is only for sick people.
• The event will not discriminate against age; every young and old individual will be welcomed for this big event.

Purpose of Event

• The overall goal of the event is to mobilize the community (African Americans) in the fight against hypertension by ensuring health access and equity.
• Hypertension has remained a health problem to African Americans, who are at a greater risk compared with the whites.
• The program will seek to bring the African Americans together so that they can receive free services within easy reach. There will be no need of worrying about health equity because the program will not be a one-time event.
• This program will make monthly appearances in the area so as to follow-up on previous cases and reinforce its objective of fighting hypertension.
• The community will have the opportunity to gain information for the first time for some, and as a review for others.

Tentative Number of Participants

I will rely on available statistics to get a rough idea of the population in the area. I will use the thumb rule (10% of total population) to estimate the participants I anticipate.

Topics

• The topics to be discussed include: diet, exercise, medication and monitoring.
• There will be numerous activities for people to engage in that will range from leisure ones to health-oriented ones.
• Social activities will include socialization, games, and entertainment.
• The more serious medical/health activities will include assessment of blood pressure, engagement in healthy exercises with the help of an instructor, and conducting interviews to get feedback.
• Questions such as the following will be used to get feedback:
  1. Is there anything new that you have encountered/learned today?
     • If yes, explain
  2. Has this event had an impact on you?
     • If yes, explain
  3. After taking part in this event, what step will you take in the fight against hypertension?

Significant Nursing Role

• A significant nursing role that could be included is promptly giving medication to those who are diagnosed as being hypertensive at the spot.
• It will be ironical if a hypertensive case will be detected and nothing will be done about it in a health-oriented event.
• Therefore, a tent with a bed and treatment equipment will be set up to cater for emergency cases.

Other Activities

• Other activities that participants would benefit from are psychiatric services, and physiotherapy.
• Most of the people with hypertension have poor stress coping strategies.
• Therefore, the inclusion of psychiatric services will help them ease their mental burden and gain some mental relaxation.
• This will help in controlling their blood pressure.
• Physiotherapy activities will target the old and those with cognitive problems.
• Such groups of people are very immobile and physiotherapy services will be an alternative for physical activity that is aimed at reducing resistance to blood flow.