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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
Susan M. Havercamp, PhD, Center for Development and Learning, University of North Carolina, CB#7255, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, (919) 966-6312, susan.havercamp@cdl.unc.edu, Yona Lunsky, PhD, Dual Diagnosis Program, University of Toronto, 1001 Queen Street West, Unit 4-4, Toronto, ON M6J 1H4, Canada, Cathy Kluttz-Hile, RN, CDDN, MA, Specialized Services Unit, Division of Public Health, Department of Human Resources, Raleigh, NC 27699, and Pamela A. Dickens, BA, North Carolina Office on Disability and Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Campus Box 8185, Chapel Hill, NC 27705-8185.
The reproductive health of women with mental retardation and other developmental disabilities (MR/DD) has been terribly neglected. Often parents are uncomfortable discussing issues relevant to women’s health such as menstruation, gynecological exams, self-breast exams, mammograms, and sexuality. As a result, many women with MR/DD neither understand nor feel comfortable with their bodies and tend to take a passive role in their health care. They rarely participate in cancer screenings thereby missing opportunities for early detection of breast or cervical cancer. The Women Be Healthy curriculum was developed to address this need. Women learn about general health concerns, their bodies, hygiene, self-breast examinations, gynecological exam, and mammogram. The second goal is anxiety reduction for medical visits. This is addressed through progressive exposure to medical instruments, procedures, and setting and the development of coping strategies. Finally, women learn to behave assertively in medical situations through role-play situations. Participants gain confidence and learn to take an active role in their health care.
The North Carolina Office on Disability and Health collaborated on two pilot groups to field-test this curriculum. Groups were conducted at two different settings: a residential provider office and a worksite. Pre- and post- measures of knowledge, responsibility, and anxiety were collected by interview with the participants and their support staff. A follow-up assessment was conducted six months after group participation to measure behavior change. Preliminary results suggest that this curriculum is promising tool to educate women with MR/DD about participating in cancer screenings.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Reproductive Health, Underserved Populations
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.