Original Research Article
Year: 2019 | Month: June | Volume: 9 | Issue: 6 | Pages: 234-245
The Effectiveness of a Behavioral Modification Intervention to Reduce Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors amongst Public Secondary School Students in Brong Ahafo Region, Ghana: A Study Design
John Amoah1, Salmiah M.Said2, Lekhraj Rampal3, Rosliza A. Manaf4, Normala Ibrahim5
1PhD Candidate, 2Medical Lecturer, 3Professor Medical Lecturer, 4Assoc. Professor Medical Lecturer,
Department of Community Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
5Assoc. Professor, Medical Lecturer, Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
Corresponding Author: John Amoah
ABSTRACT
Aims: Globally, cardiovascular disease (CVD) caused 17.5 million deaths accounting for 46.2% of non-communicable disease deaths. Risk factors among secondary school students in Ghana have reached epidemic levels. Unfortunately, many people have no knowledge of CVD and its risk factors and because of this the disease burden keeps on rising. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a school-based intervention guided by the Information-Motivation-Behavioral skills to reduce CVD risk factors among students.
Methods: A total of 848 students from four secondary schools in Brong Ahafo were randomly assigned to either intervention or control schools (two intervention and two control schools; 212 students per school) of the study. The intervention schools received a CVD risk factor reduction intervention for six months. A Self-administered questionnaire was used for data collection on socio-demographic characteristics, physical activity, smoking, alcohol, dietary habits, CVD knowledge, motivation, and behavioral skills, weight, height, and blood pressure measurements. The intervention included a health education and physical activity modules. A post intervention assessment was carried out at six months to evaluate the effects of the intervention. The generalized linear mixed model was used to test the effectiveness of the intervention between the two groups.
Discussion: Preventive measures must start as soon as possible. This is because school health programs have shown consistent improvement on the health status of students. Since behavioral change remains a driving force for controlling CVDs, there is therefore an urgent need for a behavioral change intervention among secondary school students.
Key words: Cardiovascular disease risk factors, secondary school students, behavioral modification intervention, IMB model.