May Measure Blood Pressure Screening Project (MMBPSP) is a Durban University of Technology (DUT) staff-led community engagement project that aims to provide blood pressure screening for under-resourced communities.
The project is led by Dr Rosaley Prakaschandra a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Biomedical and Clinical Technology. Prakaschandra has a background as a lecturer and researcher in cardiovascular disease. Her work has shown that the risk for the condition is very high in the South African population, with an increasing number of cases being reported in the youth.
“Hypertension (high blood pressure) is one of the main drivers of cardiovascular disease. In my capacity, I feel duty-bound to increase awareness of this condition, so that, after early detection and intervention, the development of cardiovascular disease may be delayed. I have decided to focus more on the younger members of our society, as well as those who may not ordinarily have access to this service; hence, after a few years of planning, this project, done in collaboration with the International Society of Hypertension, was initiated here at DUT,” elaborates Dr Prakaschandra.
The project uses guidelines from the International Society of Hypertension for their blood pressure screening process. This is carried out by taking the patient’s blood pressure, interpreting the reading as seen on the instrumentation and sharing information with the patient as per the findings of the screening.
The project has a wide scope of impact outside of the beneficiaries who receive these services free of charge. The student volunteers involved in the programmes also receive training and exposure to real-life clinical environments, allowing the students to develop their skills as health professionals whilst being engaged citizens.
MMBPSP is a shining jewel in the crown of community engagement at DUT. The project actively contributes to the Society perspective under ENVISION2030 and addresses five Sustainable Development Goals. The project has also received international recognition through a collaboration with the International Society of Hypertension.
The project has experienced some challenges, such as limited funding for students and participant consumables. However, Dr Prakaschandra believes that the victories that they have experienced far outweigh the negatives – she comments on some of their greatest successes below.
“This project has already identified a number of individuals, who were unaware of their high blood pressure status. We were invited to perform the health screenings at Heart and Stroke South Africa Heart Day. The data gathered from participants (after informed consent was acquired) has been fed into the International Society of Hypertension’s database, so DUT has the prestige of being part of blood pressure tracking across the world. My students have developed a deep appreciation for their profession, and I believe, a development of graduate attributes for health has been promoted by this activity,” Dr Rosaley shares.
MMBPSP tied for first place prize with the Improving Lives in the Warwick Avenue Markets project (led by Professor Firoza Haffejee of the Faculty of Health Sciences) at the 2022 Community Engagement Showcasing and Pitching Awards. The project received a cash prize of R25 000 to use toward their community engagement work.
Reflecting on the award win, Dr Prakaschandra shares, “I feel valued. A lot of the time, much of what we do as academics may not be recognised. But this project is a labour of love and is driven by the passion to evoke change, however small, in the environment that I am in. The fact that it has been recognised gives me the impetus to invest more of myself and extend it, so that more individuals may benefit. There is a need for what I have to offer for the various stakeholders, who become profoundly impacted by the knowledge that they are empowered with; even though this project contributes to the worldwide drive for improvement of health outcomes for all.”
Speaking on her hopes for the project’s future, Dr Prakaschandra states that she would like to see the project extending across the DUT community and externally. The project has already been approached by various external partners to assist with health screening at their various events and has received support from the South African Hypertension Society and the International Society of Hypertension.
If you would like to get involved in the May Measure Blood Pressure Screening Project, please contact Mrs Nene or Mrs Ramphal at the Department of Biomedical and Clinical Technology.
Picture: Dr Rosaley Prakaschandra (centre) pictured with May Measure Blood Pressure Screening student volunteers
Tracy Khuzwayo