Ethnocultural affiliation, gender, and cardiovascular disease risk management

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in North America. Making behavioural changes following a diagnosis of CVD can attenuate the disease risk. Canada's population is composed of a growing mosaic of persons of various ethnic backgrounds. A person's ethnocultural affiliation and gender can influence the context, process and outcome of their decision-making about health related behaviours. Though several models exist to assist clinicians working with persons facing behavioural change, these models do not include ethnocultural affiliation and gender as fundamental components. The authors contend that ethnocultural affiliation and gender need to be central constructs in new investigations related to behavioural change and that decision-modeling methodology is a useful mechanism to do so.