Loading…
Knowledge and perceptions of risk for cardiovascular disease : findings of a qualitative investigation from a low-income peri-urban community in the Western Cape, South Africa : original research
Background: South Africa currently faces an increasing burden of cardiovascular disease.Although referred to clinics after community screening initiatives, few individuals who are identified to be at high risk for developing cardiovascular disease attend. Low health literacy and risk perception have...
Saved in:
Published in: | African journal of primary health care & family medicine 2015-01, Vol.7 (1), p.1-8 |
---|---|
Main Authors: | , , , , |
Format: | Article |
Language: | English |
Online Access: | Get full text |
Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
Summary: | Background: South Africa currently faces an increasing burden of cardiovascular disease.Although referred to clinics after community screening initiatives, few individuals who are identified to be at high risk for developing cardiovascular disease attend. Low health literacy and risk perception have been identified as possible causes. We investigated the knowledge and perceptions about risk for cardiovascular disease in a community. Method: We conducted a series of focus group discussions with individuals from a low income peri-urban community in the Western Cape, South Africa. Different methods of presenting risk were explored. The data were organised into themes and analysed to find associations between themes to provide explanations for our findings. Results: Respondents' knowledge of cardiovascular disease and its risk factors varied, but most were familiar with the terms used to describe cardiovascular disease. In contrast,understanding of the concept of risk was poor. Risk was perceived as a binary concept and evaluation of different narrative and visual methods of presenting risk was not possible. Conclusion: Understanding cardiovascular disease and its risk factors requires a different set of skills from that needed to understand uncertainty and risk. The former requires knowledge of facts, whereas understanding of risk requires numerical and computational skills. Without a better understanding of risk, risk assessments for cardiovascular disease may fail in this community. Connaissance et perceptions des risques de maladies cardiovasculaires: résultats d'une étude qualitative dans une communauté périurbaine à faibles revenus du Western Cape, en Afrique du Sud. Contexte: A l'heure actuelle, l'Afrique du Sud se trouve confrontée à une augmentation des maladies cardiovasculaires. Bien que les patients soient envoyés dans des cliniques suite à des initiatives communautaires de dépistage, peu de ceux qui sont identifiés à haut risque de contracter des maladies cardiovasculaires se présentent. La raison en est probablement les faibles connaissances en santé et en perceptions des risques. Nous avons examiné la connaissance et la perception des risques de maladies cardiovasculaires dans une communauté. Méthode: Nous avons mené une série de discussions de groupes témoins avec des individus d'une communauté périurbaine à faibles revenus du Western Cape, en Afrique du Sud. Nous avons examiné différentes méthodes de présentation de risques. Les données ont ét |
---|---|
ISSN: | 2071-2928 2071-2936 |
DOI: | 10.4102/phcfm.v7i1.891 |