Abstract Context: Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), especially diabetes and hypertension, pose a rising public health concern in India, disproportionately affecting low- and middle-income countries. Aim: Project Jagriti implemented a structured community-based intervention across 15 districts of India to generate awareness, early detection, and adoption of healthier behaviour related to NCD prevention and management. Subjects and Methods: We employed quantitative cross-sectional studies to evaluate the effectiveness of the intervention through baseline and endline data collection conducted on independent random samples to assess the change in awareness, knowledge, and practices of adults (above 35 years). We surveyed 2525 participants at the baseline and 3030 at the end line. Results: The findings reported a significant dose-response relationship between participation in Jagriti sessions and improved knowledge scores and health practices, such as regular health checkups and monitoring of salt intake. Structural equation modelling showed that higher education and participation in the intervention group were significantly associated with higher knowledge scores, which in turn were linked to improvements in diet, physical activity, salt intake, and health check-ups. Conclusions: Project Jagriti led a community-based, culturally-relevant intervention that can drive meaningful improvements in NCD-related awareness and behaviours. Scaling up of such models is important for improving India’s NCD control goals and achieving SDG targets.
Rastogi et al. (Thu,) studied this question.