Table I.
Baseline comparisons of PLs and PRs
| PLs (n = 58) | PRs (n = 56) | P-value* | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gender, n (%) | |||
| Male | 48 (82.8) | 51 (91.1) | 0.19 |
| Female | 10 (17.2) | 5 (8.9) | |
| Age in years, mean (SD); ranged from 36 to 84 years | 62.8 (11.7) | 62.9 (11.06) | 0.96 |
| Years of Veterans Service Organization involvement, mean (SD) | 17.5 (12.2) | 16.5 (13.3) | 0.69 |
| Diagnosed with hypertension, n (%) | 44 (74.1) | 36 (62.5) | 0.18 |
| Medical background (e.g. paramedic, physician), n (%) | 21 (36.2) | 15 (26.8) | 0.28 |
| Occupation status, n (%) | |||
| Retired | 35 (60.3) | 37 (66.1) | 0.33 |
| Working for pay | 20 (34.5) | 14 (25.0) | |
| Education, n (%) | |||
| High school diploma, GED or less | 8 (14.1) | 14 (25.0) | 0.12 |
| Some college | 21 (36.8) | 23 (41.1) | |
| Earned college degree | 18 (31.6) | 14 (25.0) | |
| Some graduate training or degree | 8 (14.1) | 2 (3.6) | |
| Reasons for volunteering, n (%) | |||
| Was asked to volunteer | 5 (9.3) | 2 (3.8) | 0.25 |
| To help the post | 35 (64.8) | 25 (47.2) | 0.07 |
| Personal health reasons | 13 (24.1) | 15 (28.3) | 0.62 |
| To share my expertise | 2 (3.7) | 2 (3.8) | 0.99 |
| Interest in the topic of hypertension | 10 (18.5) | 21 (39.6) | 0.02 |
*P-values based on the appropriate statistical test (e.g. chi-square tests of independence of independent samples t-tests). Significance at P < 0.05 level. The value in bold is significant.