Storytelling as a tool for health education: Combining technology and community participation to produce tailored educational modules for low literacy older adults

Purpose: To produce and test wellness modules tailored to the needs, interests, language and health literacy of older African Americans. Background: Organizations serving lower socioeconomic aging communities often lack resources to deliver tailored wellness educational materials. Methods: A community participatory model was used in 12 affordable housing sites. This approach included: 1) collecting themes and concerns about diabetes and high blood pressure from a systematic review and focus groups; 2) Identifying community volunteers for photo images and recorded voices; 3) scripting stories, shooting photos and recording voices; 4) assembling and editing (photos, voices, graphics, and music); and 5) editing storytelling slide shows based on test group feedback. Technologies used were: digital camera, tape recorder, laptop computer, and photo editing and slide show software. Four educational modules lasting 3 hours each were presented to groups averaging 15 community participants (N=212) over 3 years. Comparison group members (N=217) completed baseline and follow-up surveys. Results: Results for diabetes and high blood pressure outcomes each showed significant pre-post intervention improvement in mean self-efficacy scores (p <.000), versus no change in comparison groups. Mean self-efficacy scores increased more in lower compared to higher health literacy respondents (p<.01). Over 85% reported the storytelling using technology approach was useful and helped self-management. Conclusion: Storytelling using volunteers is an economical way to deliver tailored health messages to communities, especially those with low health literacy. Implications: Combining existing technology coupled with community participation can facilitate the production of health and wellness modules for low literacy older minority populations.