Latino Lay Health Advisors: Backgrounds, Motivations, Challenges, and Strengths

Lay health advisors (LHAs) have been advocated as agents to promote health and prevent disease in underserved populations in the United States. Little research has focused on LHAs, as health promotion agents, and their socio-demographic profile, background, education, motivation, challenges and traits of success. Qualitative and quantitative methods were used to examine these questions with a convenience sample of 22 LHAs recruited from two communitywide health promotion programs targeting low-acculturated Latinas in the Midwest. Paper surveys were administered to obtain demographic information and focus groups were held to discuss open-ended questions regarding motivations and barriers. All of the LHAs (Mean age = 45.2) were foreign born. Most preferred to speak Spanish and less than half possessed post-secondary education. LHAs were motivated by a desire to help their community. Economic compensation did not appear to play an important role. LHAs faced many barriers, including the time commitment involved. LHAs felt that they benefited from their participation in the programs by gaining health knowledge and obtained personal satisfaction from knowing they were aiding their community. Successful LHAs were more effective when they received detailed training and strong support from the program management prior to and during the time they were serving as LHAs The results from this study may assist the selection of LHAs in future programs and help better identify the aspects that make a longstanding and effective LHA. Furthermore, this study sheds light on the social capital gained by the LHAs in their role as health promotion agents.