Predictive Factors for the Care and Control of Hypertension Based on the Health Belief Model Among Hypertensive Patients During the COVID-19 Epidemic in Sirjan, Iran.

Background: Hypertension is a leading risk factor for morbidity and mortality around the world. Preventing this health problem is considered an important priority. The aim of this study was to investigate the predictive factors for care and control of hypertension (CCH) according to the health belief model (HBM), in patients with hypertension during the COVID-19 epidemic in Sirjan, Iran.

Methods: In this cross-sectional study, participants were chosen by simple random sampling. Data were collected by a valid and reliable researcher-made questionnaire from 200 patients with high blood pressure aged 30-60 years. Data were analyzed by SPSS21 and analysis based on descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation coefficients, and linear regression was conducted.

Results: The results of Pearson correlation coefficients showed that there was a significant correlation among almost all constructs of the Health Belief Model (HBM), but the strongest correlations were between self-efficacy and perceived susceptibility (r = 0.940, P ≤ 0.001), and between perceived barriers with perceived benefits (r = -0.615, P ≤ 0.001). According to linear regression, perceived barriers (β = -0.291), cues to action (β = -0.590), and knowledge (β = 0.973) predicted more than 26% of CCH variability. Knowledge had a stronger role than other variables.

Conclusion: The results of this study show that the constructs of the Health Belief Model can predict CCH in hypertensive patients. This model can be used as a tool for designing and implementing educational interventions to increase CCH among hypertensive patients.