Reaching hard-to-reach populations to address hepatitis B disparities: Lessons learned from the B Free CEED legacy pilot program

Background/significance: Hepatitis B (HBV) is a major health disparity in Asian American communities, particularly among the most vulnerable yet hard-to-reach recent immigrants from East and Southeast Asia. Each year, B Free CEED provides pilot funding and technical assistance through the Legacy pilot grants to build capacity of local, grassroots organizations across the U.S. to conduct research and increase the hepatitis B knowledgebase to support interventions, national networking and policy advocacy activities. Objectives/purpose: An internal evaluation was conducted at the third year of this five-year program to assess its implementation and resulting impacts. The evaluation measured the extent to which the pilot project was carried out with fidelity so as to provide strategic inputs for future program management. It also assessed short-term and intermediate impacts, such as increases in grantee organizations' capacity building and expansion of their social networks. Methods: The multi-method data collection procedure included: surveys, telephone interviews with all grantees, technical assistance logs, interviews with CEED staff and community partners, and other program documents. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, coded, and analyzed for themes. Findings: Altogether, thirteen grantees have completed fifteen proposed hepatitis B projects (including two research projects) targeting hard-to-reach API groups. Preliminary survey findings indicated that grantees gained significant knowledge and skills regarding health research, program development, and evaluation. Efforts to link these grassroots organizations to national networks may require additional resources. Conclusions/Discussion: The implications of using mini-grants to facilitate the reduction of health disparities in hard-to-reach populations will be discussed.