Pemberdayaan Masyarakat dalam Menghadapi Hipertensi Melalui Terapi Akupunktur dan Manfaat Bunga Telang

Abstract

Background: Hypertension is one of the major risk factors for cardiovascular disease and is often asymptomatic, requiring early detection and community empowerment. Hypertension management requires not only medical treatment but also lifestyle modification, improved health knowledge, regular health screening, and appropriate complementary approaches. Objective: This community service activity aimed to improve community knowledge regarding hypertension, acupuncture therapy, and the use of butterfly pea flower, as well as to increase awareness through blood pressure and cholesterol screening and acupressure therapy. Methods: The activity consisted of health education, blood pressure and cholesterol screening, and acupressure therapy. A total of 40 participants completed a 10-item true-false knowledge questionnaire before and after the educational intervention. Changes in knowledge scores were analyzed using the Wilcoxon Signed-Rank test. Results: The mean knowledge score increased from 83.75 at pre-test to 93.00 at post-test, representing an increase of 9.25 points or 11.04%. The proportion of participants with good knowledge increased from 75% to 100%. Twenty-one participants showed increased scores, 17 had unchanged scores, and 2 showed decreased scores. The Wilcoxon test demonstrated a significant difference between pre-test and post-test scores (p<0.001). Health screening also showed that most participants had elevated blood pressure and/or cholesterol levels. Conclusion: Community empowerment through education, health screening, and complementary therapy can improve community knowledge regarding hypertension. The activity also helps participants recognize health risk factors and encourages sustainable hypertension management.