Using “Unnatural Causes” to raise awareness and stimulate dialogue and action about racial and ethnic health disparities-The Arkansas Story

“Unnatural Causes-is inequality making us sick?” is a documentary series examining the root causes of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities and airing in conjunction with a national public engagement campaign designed to educate, organize and advocate for policies that promote wellbeing for everyone. A multidisciplinary group within the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences came together to utilize this documentary as a tool to influence the health disparity discussion institutionally, and locally. This presentation will detail our experience with use of this tool. The activities we have undertaken broadly include dissemination of the documentary, multi-sector communication and promotion of community action. We held a series of planning meetings to discuss the series and its use internally and externally. Screenings and evaluations with multiple constituencies and stakeholders were organized. Feedback and information from these groups was used to both define our process, tailor future organizational activities and plan research/evaluation activities. Finally, this work has also been used to mobilize grassroots communities to move beyond medical care and individual behavior change models when attempting to improve the health of minority communities.