The Effects of Implementing a Self-Care Processes in Lifestyle Medicine for Patients with Hypertension at The Health Promotion Clinic, Health Promotion Center Region 1 Chiang Mai

Abstract

Hypertension is a major global and national health concern and a key risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. This quasi-experimental study employed a two-group pretest-posttest design to evaluate the effects of a lifestyle medicine-based self-care process on patients with hypertension at the Health Promotion Clinic, Health Promotion Center Region 1, Chiang Mai. The study aimed to compare the mean blood pressure, body mass index (BMI), and waist circumference of working-age hypertensive patients within the experimental group before and after the intervention, as well as between the experimental and control groups post-intervention.

The study was conducted from January to August 2024. Participants included 153 individuals aged 18–59 years who were diagnosed with hypertension, either as a primary condition or comorbidity, and registered for treatment at the clinic. Using G*Power, the sample size was calculated to be 76 participants, who were divided into an experimental group (n = 38) and a control group (n = 38) through systematic sampling (alternating even and odd days). Participants were required to communicate in Thai and provide informed consent.

The experimental group underwent an intervention based on lifestyle medicine, with assessments conducted using the Lifestyle Assessment and the STOP-BANG Questionnaire at baseline and after 12 weeks. The control group received standard care. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, the Mann-Whitney U test, and the Wilcoxon signed-rank test, with a significance level of 0.05.

Results revealed that after 12 weeks, the experimental group demonstrated significant reductions in mean blood pressure, BMI, and waist circumference at the 0.05 significance level. Between-group comparisons indicated significantly lower mean blood pressure in the experimental group compared to the control group, also at the 0.05 significance level, with no significant differences observed in BMI or waist circumference.