Kenya: Heart and Sole The Afya Njema Project

UMass Boston CNHS extends its knowledge and expertise to the African Diaspora

This past summer, the month of June was no ordinary month for a group of health professionals from CNHS who traveled to Kenya for a health promotion project, Kenya: Heart and Sole. The team included; Dr. Eileen Stuart-Shor (UMB faculty), Mercy Kamau (recent UMB BSN graduate and UMB doctoral student), and Shanna Smith (recent UMB BSN graduate) and Kenyan nurses from Kikuyu, Kijabe and Nairobi.

The purpose of this ongoing project is to address the emerging cardiovascular health crisis in Kenya through the development of a feasible, sustainable cardiovascular risk reduction program that emphasizes self-care skills. The focus is on surveillance, prevention and control of cardiovascular/ metabolic risk factors and diseases. Bringing together faculty and students from the University of Massachusetts Boston with nurses and nursing students from Kenya increased our understanding of cardiovascular disease in the African Diaspora and provided a transnational exchange of sharing and understanding.

During the June 2008 trip we surveyed community assets and individual level enablers/barriers to cardiovascular health in one province of central Kenya. We screened over 250 individuals and visited and assessed capacity for cardiovascular risk reduction in three hospitals and three rural clinics. Prior to screening we presented a risk factor educational program in a local language (Kikuyu). Participants for the screening were registered by native speaking volunteers and screened for blood pressure and random blood sugar by our UMB/Kenya team. Following screening, our UMB nurse practitioner met with patients to review screening results, assess medication efficacy and identify individuals for follow-up. The majority of individuals were not aware of their diagnosis or how to reduce cardiovascular risk. We found that people have many misconceptions about their health; one common misconception was that diabetes is a disease of the rich. Most individuals have limited access to screening, treatment and medication.

After returning to UMB we analyzed the results of our screening data and found a high prevalence of cardiovascular/metabolic risk factors. The next step is to expand our partnership with Kenyan nurses and to develop a feasible, culturally appropriate, sustainable risk reduction program that will improve the cardiovascular health of Kenyans.

In addition to screening, each member of the team presented continuing medical education lectures for PCEA Kikuyu Hospital, Kijabe Hospital and School of Nursing and Tumu Tumu Hospital and School of Nursing.

Students and faculty are welcome (and encouraged!) to join our upcoming trips to Kenya; the next scheduled trip is in June 2009. Traveling to Africa to partner with international colleagues and help the African people is an experience of a lifetime and an excellent way to give back!

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