Hypertension Self-Management Knowledge Before and Immediately After a Community Education Program Among Older Adults Attending a Posyandu

Hypertension Self-Management Education in Older Adults

Abstract

Hypertension requires sustained day-to-day management, but a brief community education program can directly evaluate only the outcomes it measures. This community service program described the immediate change in hypertension self-management knowledge among older adults in Suli Village, Central Maluku. Fifteen older adults were recruited through invitations at the Posyandu Lansia and participated voluntarily. The intervention consisted of one face-to-face education session delivered through an oral presentation supported by posters. Topics included medication adherence, salt restriction, healthy eating, physical activity, blood pressure monitoring, routine healthcare visits, and warning signs requiring professional care. Knowledge was measured immediately before and after the session using a 10-item program-specific questionnaire (score range, 0-10) developed from the educational content without formal content validation or psychometric testing. The mean score increased from 6.67 ± 1.40 at pre-test to 7.73 ± 0.80 at post-test. Eleven participants (73.3%) had higher post-test scores, while four (26.7%) had unchanged scores. The proportion in the operational good-knowledge category increased from 26.7% to 53.3%, whereas the proportion in the poor-knowledge category decreased from 26.7% to 0%. These descriptive findings show higher knowledge scores immediately after education. They do not establish knowledge retention, self-management behavior change, or improved blood pressure control.