Racial and Ethnic Differences in Awareness and Prevalence of Unidentified Cardiovascular Risk Factors Among Health...

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Cardiovascular Disease Epidemiology
• Health Disparities

Background:

• Cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains a leading cause of mortality, with risk factors disproportionately affecting various racial and ethnic groups.
• Understanding awareness of CVD risk and engagement in preventive screenings is crucial for developing targeted health interventions within diverse employee populations.
• Health system employees represent a unique cohort for studying health behaviors and disparities in a professional healthcare setting.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate awareness of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors and interest in follow-up screening among a racially and ethnically diverse group of health system employees.
• To identify differences in CVD risk factor prevalence and screening engagement across various racial and ethnic subgroups within the study population.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional study involving a voluntary survey of 759 health system employees during an annual CVD awareness event.
• Initial CVD risk screening included blood pressure and body mass index measurements, alongside self-reported data on risk factors (hypertension, high cholesterol, diabetes, overweight, smoking, physical inactivity, family history) and perceived CVD preventability.
• Logistic regression models were employed to analyze factors influencing willingness to undergo comprehensive follow-up CVD screening.

Main Results:

• Significant differences were observed in age and prevalence of hypertension and diabetes across racial and ethnic groups, with African American, Hispanic, and Asian employees being younger and reporting higher rates of certain risk factors.
• African American employees exhibited a higher prevalence of self-reported hypertension (over one-quarter) and diabetes compared to other subgroups.
• African American employees showed a 54% reduced likelihood of electing to pursue further CVD screening, indicated by an odds ratio of 0.46 (95% CI: 0.24–0.91).

Conclusions:

• Awareness of CVD risk factors, their significance, and interest in follow-up screening vary considerably among racial and ethnic groups within the health system workforce.
• The findings underscore the need for developing evidence-based, culturally tailored strategies to enhance understanding of and engagement with CVD risk factors and preventive measures.
• This research provides critical data to inform future employee health promotion initiatives and targeted interventions aimed at reducing CVD disparities.