Comparison of the Effect of Training by Peers and Health Care Staffs on Adherence to Treatment in Patients with Hypertension

Aims: Hypertension is one of the major problems in the world. Adherence to treatment of patients with hypertension is insufficient, and there are conflicting results regarding the effect of peer education. Therefore, this study was conducted to compare the effect of training by peers and health care staff on adherence to treatment in patients with hypertension. Materials Methods: This clinical trial was done on patients with hypertension in Yasuj, Iran, in 2017. Two hundred sixty-four eligible individuals were selected using convenience sampling and randomly assigned to three peers, health center staff, and control groups (88 people in each group). The data collection tool was a researcher-made questionnaire assessing adherence to treatment of patients with hypertension, psychometrically evaluated. The questionnaire was completed by three groups before, after, and two months after the intervention by participants. Five education sessions were conducted weekly by the peer group for intervention group 1 and the health care personnel for intervention group 2. Data were analyzed by SPSS 24, using Repeated Measures Analysis of Variance, Chi-square test, and Bonferroni test. Findings: Both educational interventions by peers and health care personnel effectively increased adherence to treatment of patients with hypertension (p 0.05). Although at the end of the intervention, education by peers and health care staff had the same effect on increasing treatment adherence, two months after the intervention, peer education on adherence to treatment was greater than education by health center staff. Conclusion: Peer education also increases adherence to treatment in patients with hypertension; thus, due to its cost-effectiveness and the lack of special equipment, peer education is recommended as a suitable approach.