BEYOND THE CLINIC WALLS: COMMUNITY PERSPECTIVES ON BARRIERS AND ENABLERS OF BLOOD PRESSURE SCREENING AND MONITORING - A SCOPING REVIEW PROTOCOL

BackgroundHypertension is a leading modifiable risk factor for cardiovascular disease and a major cause of mortality in Africa. Despite the high burden, community-level detection and monitoring remain underdeveloped, with most research focusing on clinical settings. Understanding community perspectives is essential for designing sustainable, culturally relevant interventions.ObjectiveThis scoping review aims to map existing evidence on barriers and facilitators of blood pressure screening and monitoring in African communities, with attention to socio-cultural, economic, and health system factors.MethodsThe review will follow Arksey and O’Malley’s framework, enhanced by Levac et al., and reported using PRISMA-ScR guidelines. Guided by the PCC framework, studies involving adults in community settings across Africa will be included if they report barriers or enablers to screening or monitoring. Both peer-reviewed and grey literature (2000–2025) will be considered. Data will be charted and synthesized narratively and in tables.ConclusionBy centering community voices, this scoping review will provide policymakers, practitioners, and civil society with evidence to design culturally grounded, sustainable strategies for hypertension control in Africa, while also identifying research gaps to advance future inquiry.