Back to Annual Meeting

Back to Annual Meeting

APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

James C. O'Leary¹, Janet L. Williams, MS, CGC², Maile Taualii, MPH³, Panelpha Kyler, MA, OTR/L⁴, and Sharon F. Terry, MA, LHD¹. (1) Genetic Alliance, 4301 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 404, Washington, DC 20008, 202.966.5557 x206, joleary@geneticalliance.org, (2) Clinical Genetics Institute, Intermountain Healthcare, 324 10th Avenue, Suite 127, Salt Lake City, UT 84103, (3) Urban Indian Health Institute, Seattle Indian Health Board, PO Box 3364, Seattle, WA 98114, (4) Genetics Services Branch, MCHB, HRSA/DHHS, 5600 Fishers Lane, Room 18A-19, Rockville, MD 20857

We hypothesize that engaging families in the collection of family health history may well be the ideal tool to promote positive health behavior and basic genetics education. Family health history is ideal because it combines clinical utility (as a predictor of health) with accessibility (by featuring folklore and genealogy). However, the amount of diversity and number of individuals in any community make creating a one-size-fits-all family health history tool nearly impossible. The varied needs of different cultures require a flexible approach, one best vetted by the organizations that already serve those communities directly. Of course, existing tools are an important resource, but they must be paired with complementary materials.

The Coalition for Accessible Family Health History Tools was formed in order to promote family health history within all types of communities via the creation and dissemination of "Using Family Health History Tools: A Guide to Making Tools Accessible to Your Community." The Guide is aimed at national, community, and disease-specific advocacy organizations interested in promoting the collection of family health history among their members and in their locality. The goal of the Guide is to help organizations use existing family health history tools and create complementary materials that will increase the accessibility of those tools. It provides techniques for developing new materials and tools while simultaneously highlighting dissemination techniques and promoting the distribution of existing materials. Finally, the Guide outlines how to lead a successful family health history initiative, from assessment of community knowledge to targeted dissemination of materials.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant will be able to

• Identify existing family health history tools and initiatives
• Articulate barriers to accessibility that can occur in health and genetics educational materials
• Use the described guide to create a comprehensive family health history program tailored to their community

Keywords: Community-Based Health Promotion, Risk Communication

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Not Answered