As people get older, they will experience the elderly phase which is characterized by a decrease in the function of the organs in their body, in line with this, various comorbidities will occur. Elderly one of which is hypertension.

Disease Hypertension or what is known as “high blood pressure” by the general public in Indonesia, is a condition where systolic blood pressure is above 140 mmHg with diastolic pressure ranging from 90–99 mmHg. Hypertension is one of the diseases with the highest number of cases in Indonesia.

On 24 May 2023, in order to welcome National Elderly Day and enrich the knowledge of elderly people regarding comorbidities, Cita Sehat holding educational activities regarding hypertension for the elderly in Cimenyan District, Bandung Regency. The educational material presented consists of:

1. Hypertension Classification

Explanation of educational material regarding the classification of hypertension is presented so that seniors can know the division of grades or level of alertness for each grade in hypertension which is divided into 3 grades, including grade 1 with systolic blood pressure of 140-149 mmHg and diastolic blood pressure of 100-109 mmHg, in grade 2 with systolic blood pressure ranging from 160-179 mmHg and diastolic blood pressure 110 mmHg, then at grade 3 with systolic blood pressure ranging more than 180 mmHg and diastolic blood pressure more than 110 mmHg.

2. Hypertension Symptoms

In the education process, elderly people are given a stimulus to mention the complaints they have experienced so far, including: headaches, dizziness, heart palpitations, chest pain, anxiety, blurred vision, fatigue, which are associated with education on the symptoms of hypertension.

3. Factors Causing Hypertension

Broadly speaking, the factors that cause hypertension are divided into 2, namely demographic factors consisting of age and heredity. Other factors are behavioral factors which consist of smoking, stress, alcohol consumption, excessive consumption of salt, fat and cholesterol, not eating enough fruit and vegetables, and rarely exercising.

4. Prevention of Hypertension

The main aim of health education is so that people can prevent disease, such as several things that can be done to minimize the occurrence of hypertension with the following things: reducing salt consumption (should not exceed 1 teaspoon per day), doing regular physical activity (such as walking walk 3 km or exercise 30 minutes per day at least 5 times a week), do not smoke and avoid cigarette smoke, diet with balanced nutrition, maintain ideal body weight, avoid drinking alcohol.

5. Healthy Exercise for the Elderly

Providing educational material on steps for healthy exercise for the elderly aims to enable the elderly to demonstrate healthy exercise in their respective homes so that it becomes a new habit for carrying out physical activities that are adapted to the conditions of the elderly.

During the educational activity, many elderly participants asked questions about hypertension, one of which was Mrs. Kurniasih (54) who asked “Is there a cure for hypertension?” To overcome this, hypertension sufferers can carry out hypertension therapy or take medication such as amlodipine which can reduce high blood pressure.

The enthusiasm of the elderly when the health education program for hypertension was in progress became an enthusiasm for Cita Sehat to continue to carry out and develop programs targeting the Elderly.

Muhammad Rakha Almughni – Cita Sehat Foundation

Reference :

Directorate of Prevention and Control of Non-Communicable Diseases, Indonesian Ministry of Health, 2023