Getting a Grip on NCDs in China: an Evaluation of the Implementation of the Dutch-China Cardiovascular Prevention Program

# The Author(s) 2014. This article is published with open access at Springerlink.com Purpose China has experienced a rapid increase in cardiovas-cular diseases and related chronic conditions over the last 20 years, and there is now an urgent need for new approaches that can effectively reduce the progression of cardiovascular disease in high-risk individuals. This article reports on the evaluation of the implementation of the Dutch-China Cardiovascular Prevention Program. Methods A screening questionnaire, based on the Dutch con-cept of Prevention-Consultation, was distributed among in-habitants in seven communities in Anhui Province, China. This tool categorizes individuals into being at low or high risk according to their responses to a number of self-administered questions. The “high-risk ” individuals were then invited to undergo further clinical and laboratory tests, before being offered lifestyle education and counseling. The program is delivered by primary care professionals from local community health service centers (CHSCs). An evaluation of the pro-gram’s implementation was undertaken with both program participants and CHSC staff. Results The screening questionnaire was completed by 9067 participants in seven demonstration communities. Thirty per-cent of these individuals were categorized as high risk accord-ing to their scores. About one third of these individuals returned for further clinical and laboratory tests. Almost half of those re-screened participated in lifestyle education classes. Program participants and community health staff provided mostly positive feedback about the program. Conclusions While the program proved acceptable and feasi-ble for delivery by CHSCs and by program participants, additional strategies are required to improve future uptake of both screening and subsequent lifestyle education by those at high risk