The Rwandan government has announced plans to empower community health workers in the tracking and managing hypertension to help the country deal with the issue, which affected at least 15 per cent of the population in 2022.
The Ministry of Health projected the prevalence of hypertension to increase to nearly 18 per cent by 2025, due to such factors imbalanced diet, tobacco and alcohol use, physical inactivity, among others.
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The Minister of Health, Dr Sabin Nsanzimana, told Members of Parliament on Wednesday, January 22, that community health workers would be given equipment to measure blood pressure and screen other non-communicable diseases like diabetes by the end of 2025.
"Nowadays, a person abruptly faints because they had blood pressure [without knowing that they had a problem]. This often happens both in urban and rural areas," he said.
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Non-communicable diseases account for 44 per cent of deaths in Rwanda, according to official statistics.
"A community health worker will help in the early detection of these diseases," Nsanzimana said.
"The plan is that we will provide blood pressure monitors to all community health workers," he said, adding that some of them had already started to offer the services in some parts of the country like Rubavu District.
He said that by the end of 2025 people in every village would be able to get the services.
There are 58,000 community health workers countrywide, about four per village.
"We are mobilising resources so that a person in any given village can go to a community health worker and get screened for blood pressure, blood glucose level, and get the results," the minister said.
He added that, if necessary, community health workers will be able to provide emergency medicines and refer the patients to health centres for treatment.
The approach can prevent serious or severe cases of such medical conditions among the population, hence helping in their effective management, he said.
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Risk factors for hypertension
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), modifiable risk factors for hypertension include unhealthy diet (excessive salt consumption, a diet high in saturated fat and trans fats, low intake of fruits and vegetables), physical inactivity, consumption of tobacco and alcohol, and being overweight or obese.
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In addition, there are environmental risk factors for hypertension and associated diseases, with air pollution being the most significant.
Non-modifiable risk factors include a family history of hypertension, age over 65 years, and co-existing diseases such as diabetes or kidney disease.
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Prevention
The WHO states that lifestyle changes can help lower high blood pressure and can help anyone with hypertension.
Lifestyle changes that can help prevent and lower the risk of high blood pressure include eating vegetables and fruits, sitting less and being more physically active, which can include walking, running, swimming, dancing, or activities that build strength, like lifting weights.
Losing weight for overweight or obese people is also recommended.
One can also reduce the risks of hypertension by reducing and managing stress by regularly checking blood pressure, treating high blood pressure, managing other medical conditions, and reducing exposure to polluted air.
