Our Healthy Heart Project recognised for helping 1,600+ residents
Through our Healthy Heart project, we are working hard to raise awareness of high blood pressure in African, Caribbean and South Asian communities.
We're thrilled this work has been formally recognised by the African Caribbean Culture Society of Barnet. In May 2022, the project was launched in partnership with Barnet Council. Since then the team - Judi Dumont-Barter, Salna Abdallah and Riffat Ahmed - have supported 1,683 residents to manage their cardiovascular health.
Judi Dumont-Barter, our Healthy Heart Peer Co-ordinator, said:
“It's a privilege to work with our peers in Barnet's African, Caribbean and South Asian communities to tackle cardiovascular disease by having effective conversations, carrying out blood pressure checks, and supporting people to make crucial changes like reducing their salt intake.
Global majority people are more likely to face health inequalities, and we're passionate about empowering our communities to access improved health. We're also continually learning from the residents who take part in our project, about how we can work together to challenge inequity. The project is going from strength to strength and we're excited to continue this vital work.”
The project takes a unique approach to heart health by addressing the issue of high blood pressure in African, Caribbean and South Asian communities through peer-to-peer support from trusted and reliable staff who understand, and are part of, these communities. The Heathy Heart programme is part Healthwatch Barnet, and both are delivered by Inclusion Barnet, a Deaf and Disabled People’s Organisation. Most Inclusion Barnet staff have lived experience of disability and use their experience, combined with their commitment to amplifying residents’ voices, to enrich and strengthen their work.
The project was launched in 2022 by Inclusion Barnet, and since autumn 2023, management and oversight has sat within Healthwatch Barnet, which is delivered by Inclusion Barnet. To make the project happen, we work very closely with a number of fantastic Barnet-based community groups, and we are very grateful for their support.
A Healthy Heart participant's family member said:
“Healthy Heart has saved lives. After my uncle got his blood pressure taken he was told to see his doctor as it was 190/100. He saw his doctor and ended up in hospital. It turned out he had a very serious heart problem and got treatment. Without Healthy Heart he may not have found out until it was too late.”
