Community Health Advisors as Advocates

Purpose: To facilitate the development of an informed and vocal electorate in the African American community of New Haven.

Project Activities: These include community education to raise awareness of diabetes realted issues among residents, legislators and community leaders; convening a Candidates Forum to increase their awareness of diabetes as a major public health issue and of the need for legislation to reduce the incidence and improve the management of this disease and participation of community health advisors in a Get Out to Vote Campaign.

The presentation will focus on the essential skills and competencies required by community members to effectively advocate for health policy change at the local and state level. The presenters will elucidate strategies successfully employed during the project to engage and educate members of several church congregations in an urban African American community. The session includes a discussion of how to develop an effective yet inexpensive advocacy plan for health policy change. Community based participatory methods used during planning and implementation of the advocacy plan will be outlined. The presentation will be developed in collaboration with the community health advisors who worked on the project. The health advisors will co-present at the conference.