Heart Diseases in African American WomenHeart diseases are a major and imperative concern in the United States. It tops the list of causes of death in the United States and can be absolutely devastating (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2013). In the first part of the health disparities paper, disparities in heart disease were highlighted among people of low socioeconomic status and/or minorities. The second part of this article has been streamlined to address a more specific minority: African American women. The reason we focus on the African American female population is because there is a huge disparity specifically seen in this group. In 2009, African Americans as a whole were 30% more likely to die from cardiovascular disease than Caucasians (US Department of Health & Human Services Office of Minority Health [OMH], 2012). The rate of cardiovascular disease among African American women in particular is higher (48.9%) than the rate of cardiovascular disease among African American men (44.4%), showing an even greater disparity among African American women (American Heart Association, 2013). The purpose of this article is to identify and evaluate two different articles around this topic. Both articles involve an intervention in which similar community prevention programs were implemented in hopes of reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease among African American women. The first article is titled Love Your Heart: A Community Pilot Intervention to Improve the Cardiovascular Health of African American Women. . The authors of this study are: Fatima Rodriguez, Lula Christopher, Caitlin E. Johnson, Yun Wang and JoAnne M. Foody. The purpose of this study is to determine whether implementing a heart-healthy community prevention program,...... middle of paper ...... prevention programs significantly reduce risk factors of cardiovascular disease among African-American women. Both articles were reviewed and evaluated, and the results were positive in both cases. In both articles, all measured cardiovascular disease risk factors decreased between the start and end of the programs. This shows how impactful these group programs are on this population. Not only was this intervention physically effective, but it was also cost-effective, demonstrating its feasibility in all aspects. It is extremely helpful for nurses to understand the far-reaching impact of these programs because they can view these studies and implement programs like this elsewhere. A nurse has a duty to promote health and well-being. So it’s important to know what works and what doesn’t. As this article shows, group programs can be very effective in preventing cardiovascular disease..