Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #114644

Aurelio Martinez, LBSW¹, Angie L. Alaniz², Jeff Barstad³, James N. Burdine, DrPH⁴, Heather M. Dillard, MPH², Stacy Maines, BS⁵, Nella Mupier⁴, Julie Ann Parrish St. John, MA, MPH⁶, and Monica L. Wendel, MA, MPH⁷. (1) Prevention Research Center for Rural Community Health Development, School of Rural Public Health, Texas A&M University Syste Health Science Center, 701 E. Vermont Ave., McAllen, TX 78503, 956-668-6321, aumartinez@srph.tamhsc.edu, (2) Community Health Development Program, School of Rural Public Health, 1103 University Drive East, Suite 100, College Station, TX 77840, (3) Center for Community Health Development, School of Rural Public Health, Texas A&M University HSC, 1103 University Drive, Suite 100, College Station, TX 77840, (4) Center for Community Health Development, School of Rural Public Health, Texas A&M University System Health Science Center, 1103 University Drive, Suite 100, College Station, TX 77840, (5) Center for Community Development, School of Rural Public Health, 1103 University Dr., 200, College Station, TX 77840, (6) Independent Consultant, 5514 Roanwood, San Antonio, TX 78244, (7) Center for Community Health Development, School of Rural Public Health, Texas A&M University, 1103 University Drive, Suite 100, College Station, TX 77840

The Center for Community Health Development (CCHD, School of Rural Public Health, The Texas A&M University System Health Science Center) is currently the administrator/facilitator of the “Integrated Health Outreach System (IHOS)” project—a $5 million, four-year effort, funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Bureau of Primary Health Care, Health Resources and Services Administration. The major goal of this project is to create a proactive public health model that will help isolated colonia residents to: reduce physical and mental health problems; improve access to primary care services; and strengthen community capacity. The project employs a community health development strategy aimed at increasing the capacity of local organizations and communities to more effectively impact the health of their populations. Local community lay-health workers (promotores) are trained and employed through a network of multiple agencies and work within communities located in the colonias, where clinical staff are stationed as “outposts” of state and federally funded community health centers. Since the beginning of this project, there has been a significant evolution of the relationships not only between the IHOS partnership and CCHD, but among the partners as well. When the project began, there was little history of collaboration among partners and now relationships have expanded beyond the IHOS project. This session will address these changes in partnership relationships as well as the factors contributing to these evolutions—such as change in partner's roles, addressing project sustainability, expansion of project services, and changes in overall strategies and goals.

Learning Objectives: Learning objectives of this session include

• describe how to develop an integrated partnership using a “Community Health Development” approach;
• identify key strategies for developing good relationships between an academic institution and community partners; and
• list factors contributing to changes among community partner relationships.

Keywords: Community-Based Partnership, Community Development

Related Web page: www.srph.tamhsc.edu/centers/chd/integrated%20health%20outreach.htm

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.

Recorded presentation