Eliminating Tobacco Use among LGBT Adults in Wisconsin: An Academic-Community Partnership for Health

The Wisconsin Partnership Fund for a Health Future provides resources to organizations and academic partners to assess and address the health needs of populations. Diverse and Resilient, Inc. developed a relationship with the School of Medicine and Public Health (UWSMPH) to assess health disparities among LGBT adults and their heterosexual peers. A series of community health improvement processes (CHIP) were employed over a four-year period, involving over 200 LGBT people across the state. Data supporting need, limited awareness of public health, and insufficient infrastructure challenged the selection of a health priority. Further, efforts to develop an evidence-based approach to tobacco cessation for LGBT people were limited by the lack of relevant literature, challenging access to tobacco cessation products, and wariness of community members. Once a program approach was identified, a steering committee designed an intervention involving marketing of a statewide quit line, agency policy audits, formal and informal outreach through trained community health workers, and a six-session quit group. The relationships with UWSMPH and the Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention (CTRI) have proven invaluable. Branding a health promotion program for use in five community centers was developed to support collaboration. Early results of the program suggest positive impact on the knowledge and behaviors of LGBT community centers in Wisconsin; assessment of impact on LGBT individuals will be done in subsequent years. The impact of academic-community partnerships for health on LGBT organizations and a medical school program appear positive, starting with funding for a three-year intervention in five Wisconsin communities.