Abundant Living: A Church-based Intervention to Improve Blood Pressure in African Americans
Rush University Medical Center
Summary
This is a 12-month behavioral cluster-randomized trial testing a church-based intervention to reduce blood pressure in African Americans with uncontrolled blood pressure.
Eligibility
- Age range
- 18+ years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- No
Inclusion Criteria: Churches: * At least 75 members and ability to recruit 15 study participants * Predominantly African American congregants Participants: * Age 18 or older * Has blood pressure readings with uncontrolled blood pressure, defined as exceeding the blood thresholds for initiation of antihypertensive medication according to the 2017 American College of Cardiology/ American Heart Association (ACC/AHA) guidelines. \- The thresholds are 140/90 for the general population \< 65 years old, and 130/80 for individuals ≥ 65 or with diabetes, chronic kidney disease, or high cardiovas…
Interventions
- BehavioralHeart to Heart
The Heart to Heart intervention will be delivered at the churches over 6 months. The intervention consists of 12 bible study sessions (45 minutes) led by the Senior Pastor and 24 behavior change small group sessions (90 minutes) led by a trained Rush staff interventionist. These sessions are open to the entire church membership and focus on improving diet and physical well being. A community health worker will provide individualized support to participants with uncontrolled blood pressure who do not reduce their blood pressure by participating in small groups.
- BehavioralMoney Smart
The Money Smart program for adults was developed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). It consists of training modules that cover basic financial topics including deposit and credit services offered by financial institutions, how to obtain and use credit effectively, and the basics of building or repairing credit. This group-based program will be delivered in 14 sessions over 6 months and will be led by a trained instructor.
Location
- Rush University Medical CenterChicago, Illinois