DrNiamh Chapman

Project Opportunities

Title: Adapting a blood pressure education support package for people living in culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities.

Summary of opportunity:

A project is available to co-adapt a blood pressure educational support package, the ‘BP Toolkit’, that has been co-designed with English speaking people, for people from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds. This project will include a cluster of research studies investigating blood pressure measurement and management in CALD populations, and then working with community members to adapt the BP Toolkit and deliver it in these populations. 

Opportunity synopsis:

Despite safe, effective, and affordable treatment options, blood pressure control in Australia is poor with more than one-million adults at risk of avoidable disability and premature death due to poor blood pressure management. Effective blood pressure management requires appropriate patient education to support regular monitoring and two-way feedback between patients and providers, however there is currently a lack of evidence-based patient education resources and no standardised way to support regular blood pressure monitoring and reporting between patients and providers.

We have co-designed a blood pressure education Toolkit, coined the ‘BP Toolkit’, which is a standardised package of evidence-based recommendations for patients to self-monitor BP and navigate BP management activities. We have co-designed this BP Toolkit in English-speaking populations, although we know that people from CALD backgrounds face additional barriers to access health services and act on health information. This project involves multiple studies to co-adapt the BP Toolkit for a Chinese migrant population and then determine the feasibility, acceptability, and efficacy of the BP Toolkit in health settings.

The cluster of projects include, but are not limited to:

·       Literature review of blood pressure control in immigrant populations,

·       Blood pressure prevalence, awareness, treatment and control among CALD communities in Australia.

·       Chinese migrant community needs for blood pressure management in Australia.

·       Co-adapting the BP Toolkit for a Chinese-migrant population, and a feasibility and efficacy trial.