The proposed study will be conducted among the low and middle-income population in Karachi. This population is likely to be particularly prone to CVD, has the poorest access to quality care, and is often prescribed expensive drugs by GPs.
Screening visit: The Community Health Workers (CHW) will pay home visits to invite all subjects aged 5 years or over to participate in the survey. The screening would have three levels: 1) Household screening for subjects aged 5 years and over (n= 17,850 individuals, 3000 households). 2) Adult screening for individuals aged 40 years or over (n= 4200 individuals). 3) Hypertensive adults screening (n= 1860 individuals) for those identified to have hypertension on adult screening will be invited for re-measurement of BP to confirm hypertension.
Intervention Effectiveness Study: This is a 2x2 factorial design, cluster allocation intervention study comparing controls with intervention by primary care GP, with or without health education. The main comparisons relate to the reduction of BP in a) all household members (aged \> 5 years), and b) hypertensive adults (aged \> 40 years).
Interventions: The sample will be assigned to four intervention groups:
* Group A: Routine care.
* Group B: Routine care plus Health Education
* Group C: Care provided by trained GP
* Group D: Care provided by trained GP plus Health Education.
