Disease perception and experiences among rural Bangladeshi hypertensive women: A qualitative approach

Abstract

Background: Hypertension (HTN) is well established as a leading cause of common serious illnesses worldwide. We carried out this qualitative research to understand perception of and experiences related to HTN among rural Bangladeshi hypertensive women. Methods: A total of 74 female hypertensive participants who were diagnosed as HTN were purposively recruited in a rural community in Mirzapur, Bangladesh. A focus group discussion(FGD) was applied to share their perception and experiences. Transcripts were read in an iterative process, and a thematic analysis was performed. This paper is reported followed by COREQ checklist. Results: Three main themes were generated; (i) Perception of HTN based on experiences, (ii)Knowledge of management of HTN, and (iii) Barriers of management of HTN. Under the themes, seven subthemes were identified. The participants only knew about their high blood pressure(HBP) when they had symptoms, and they applied traditional remedies in the rural context to deal with those symptoms. Even though more than half of participants had relevant knowledge of how to manage HTN, but still there were social-cultural and economic barriers and lack of social infrastructure to access healthcare, existed to practice them. Conclusion: Based on our study reports, health education programs at the household and community level could be a potential starting point for any preventive and containment strategy in rural communities of Bangladesh.

Gender disparity in telehealth usage in Bangladesh during COVID-19

“…Many females, especially those living in the country's rural regions, are unaware of common illnesses such as hypertension or diabetes. 74 female hypertensive participants were recruited for focus group discussion (FGD) in a rural community in the Mirzapur area during the pandemic, where they only knew about high blood pressure, but lack of social infrastructure, socio-cultural and economic barriers prevented them from seeking medical help even during the pandemic, where telemedicine facilities were available for their convenience ( Jahan et al., 2020 ). Expanding the study to other areas, and not restricting it to a rural area will shed some light on the root cause for females not seeking formal medical healthcare.…”

“…However, no study has been conducted involving both rural and urban parts of the country to assess telehealth efficacy in females vs males. Usability is one of the barriers to telehealth adoption; 61% of usability problems contributed to slow adoption of mobile health usage ( Jahan et al., 2020 ). But this paper only examines mobile applications and could be extended to other forms such as web applications and analyze which gender uses which application most.…”

“…Misinformation and lack of communication networks made the healthcare system crumble, vulnerable and incompetent. In such chaos, national media outlets failed to efficiently and effectively deliver reliable information to the female audience from all walks of life, letting the more personalized and internet-based occupy the communication space ( Jahan et al., 2020 ; Rahman et al., 2017 ). However, there is insufficient broadband coverage in most of the rural areas, posing further challenges to telehealth usage.…”

Awareness Development and Usage of Mobile Health Technology Among Individuals With Hypertension in a Rural Community of Bangladesh: Randomized Controlled Trial

“…Besides, they lack opportunity to check BP regularly due to inadequate health check-up systems. As we previously reported [ 45 ], people were aware of HTN when they have symptoms. In this study, CHWs have visited home to home and checked BP and food and urine salinity, which was a momentous opportunity for them.…”

Patients’ understanding, management practices, and challenges regarding hypertension: A qualitative study among hypertensive women in a rural Bangladesh

“…Furthermore, in comparison to men, rural women are usually faced with less availability and accessibility to information and related sources and less exposure to media and intensive campaigns, impacting their health outcomes. Additionally, lack of health-care-seeking practices also prevails among women [ 18 ]. In this connection, the prevalence of hypertension among women in Bangladesh should not be underestimated.…”