Turn the Beat Around: A Stroke Prevention Program for African-American Churches

Objective: The objective was to pilot a socioculturally tailored church-based stroke prevention program delivered by trained community health workers (CHWs) and to test its effects on participant knowledge scores. Design and Sample: A single-group, pre-post test pilot study was conducted with a convenience sample of 201 adult African-Americans recruited from nine churches in three Alabama counties. Measurements included participant weight, blood pressure (BP), physical activity level; knowledge related to hypertension, heart disease, and stroke; cigarette smoking; and access to care, as well as the Stages of Change constructs within the Transtheoretical Model. The intervention was a six-session group-based health education program delivered by trained CHWs. Measures: Measurements included participant weight, blood pressure (BP), physical activity level; knowledge related to hypertension, heart disease, and stroke; cigarette smoking; and access to care, as well as the Stages of Change constructs within the Transtheoretical Model. The intervention was a six-session group-based health education program delivered by trained CHWs. Results: From baseline to 12 weeks, knowledge increased significantly (p < .001). Systolic BP measures improved (p = .0008). More than half of participants lost weight; however, weight change did not reach significance (p = .1380). Most (87%) participants indicated having a medical home at baseline at the end of the study the percentage increased to 92% (p = .0138). Conclusion: A church-based intervention delivered by trained CHWs is feasible and may be a promising public health strategy to increase knowledge regarding hypertension and stroke prevention among African-Americans.