Brief intervention for stress management and change in illness perception among hypertensive and normotensive workers: pilot study and protocol

Gerusa Estelita Pires,Elisa Kern Castro,Ana Carolina Peuker

doi:10.1186/s41155-017-0080-x

Gerusa Estelita Pires, Elisa Kern Castro + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1186/s41155-017-0080-x

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Abstract

The objective of this study was to describe and evaluate the effects of a pilot intervention on perceived stress, knowledge about hypertension, and illness perception among hypertensive and normotensive workers. The intervention consisted of two group sessions performed in the workplace aiming to reduce stress, increase knowledge about hypertension, and explore the effect on illness perception. The sessions included clinical aspects of systemic arterial hypertension, illness perception and health behavior, and strategies for stress management. Workers from a petrochemical industry (19 hypertensive and 14 normotensive) participated in the study by answering a biosociodemographic questionnaire, the Brief Illness Perception Questionnaire, the Perceived Stress Scale, and a quiz with questions about hypertension. The measurements were collected at an initial meeting to gather the participants and 90 days after the intervention. There was a significant reduction in the perceived stress levels of both groups, in addition to an increase in the perception of personal control and illness coherence. Normotensive workers also increased their knowledge about hypertension, while hypertensive patients increased the perception that treatment could control the illness. In conclusion, the pilot intervention generated positive effects and can be considered a strategy of illness prevention for normotensive workers and control for hypertensive patients.

Highlights

IntroductionIntroduction to theProject, the stages of the intervention and the study. Sensitization to the theme “psychological aspects and behavior in health” and to the idea that the participants could become multipliers of the knowledge acquired, with their relatives and other people close to them
Introduction to theProject, the stages of the intervention and the study
The findings suggest that the participants of both groups may have felt more capable of managing stressful events from the understanding that stress levels do not depend exactly on situations, but on how participants perceive and face such events

Summary

Introduction

Introduction to theProject, the stages of the intervention and the study. Sensitization to the theme “psychological aspects and behavior in health” and to the idea that the participants could become multipliers of the knowledge acquired, with their relatives and other people close to them. Systemic arterial hypertension (SAH) is a chronic illness considered to be a serious global public health problem It is one of the major risk factors for the development of cardiovascular disease, kidney failure, and stroke. SAH is a disease of difficult control, for even after diagnosis, due to the absence of symptoms, many people are unaware or do not follow the treatment and the necessary recommendations to control it (World Health Organization [WHO], 2013). In this sense, WHO (2013) has sought to sensitize the private sector to the need to develop health programs, with attention to the prevention and treatment of hypertension and associated comorbidities. There is a lack of health prevention interventions conducted in the workplace, especially in Brazil

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Conclusion