The Tribune

HYPERTENSION in black women of Caribbean descent continues to rise at an alarming rate. Bahamian women also fall into this high-risk category as incidences of non-chronic communicable diseases increase annually, according to a new study.

Guest speaker Dr Elizabeth Williams shared her work at the first Research Edge Forum for the fall 2015 semester held at the College of the Bahamas’ Harry C Moore Library and Information Centre last Friday.

Initiatives

Dr Williams discovered that despite national initiatives to educate the public about the dangers of hypertension and the importance of hypertensive medication regimens, large numbers of women in the country still die from cardiovascular disease.

Her research focused on “The Influence of Knowledge and Self-Efficacy on Bahamian Women’s Adherence to a Hypertensive Medication Regime”. She spoke of how various factors such as educational achievement, family history and religious domination played a role in the adherence to hypertensive medication regimes.

The purpose of the research study was to determine if knowledge and self-efficacy are statistically significant predictors of compliance to a hypertensive regimen in women 25 to 65 years of age receiving treatment for hypertension. The Health Belief Model by Becker and Rosenstock in 1984 set the structure for Dr Williams’ research study.

Notable population findings were that 56 per cent of study participants had been diagnosed with hypertension within the six months previous to the research study, and 75 per cent of respondents had some family history of hypertension.

The beta weighted demographic variables of the study – age, educational achievement and family history – proved to have a significant correlation to the self-knowledge adherence to a treatment regime in hypertension.

Study

The socioeconomic variables, which include marital status and employment, showed statistical evidence but the findings were not consistent enough to determine if they were useful predictors to study subject. As the study focused on women, Dr Williams noted that a similar study should be done with the male population as there is little information available regarding men diagnosed with hypertension.

Questionnaires were used to collect data to investigate the relationships of Bahamian women, knowledge, and self-efficacy in adherence to hypertensive treatment regimen. The study was conducted in New Providence and a few Family Islands. Women in this study displayed high confidence in adherence to a medical regime in hypertension. The participants’ age, educational achievement, a family history of hypertension and a diagnosis of hypertension for more than 10 years significantly impacted women’s adherence to a medication regime. The research can be used to develop a preventative model of health in nursing and secondary education geared at reducing the incidence of hypertension mortality among women.

“I think it is paramount to have this discussion as studies have proven that hypertensive cases are projected to increase by 60 percent in 25 years. If we cannot get hypertensive patients to comply, we will continue to see an increased number of cardiovascular diseases and, ultimately, deaths due to cardiovascular disease,” said Dr Williams.

Dr William is a graduate of Barry University, Florida was trained in Critical Care Nursing under the Ministry of Health in the early 2000 and is a certified ACLs and BLS instructor. She is presently an Assistant Professor at the School of Nursing and Allied Health Professions.

“Research Edge is an important forum at which academics can share their research with the community. This presentation demonstrates the contribution which the college makes to issues of national importance”, said Dr Ian Bethell-Bennett, the Interim Chair of the Research Advisory Board.

“We hope that this research will contribute to national development by helping enhance our quality of life by reminding us to take care of our health.”