141st APHA Annual Meeting

In This section

286032
Community health promoters - moving towards a healthier community through health justice and community development

Monday, November 4, 2013

Ana Paula Lynch, MS. LPC , CORE/El Centro, milwaukee, WI
Proyecto Salud is an innovative and powerful program that has trained and mentored more than 75 members of the Latino community as “Promotores de Salud” in Wisconsin. Proyecto Salud's model is one of community development and capacity building and has been recognized by the Wisconsin Department of Minority Health Services as “Promising Practice”. In 2009 Proyecto Salud was also awarded the “Commissioner's Community Award of Excellence”. With an ecological approach to public health Proyecto Salud has successfully maintained the program voicing the strengths and needs of the underserved Latino community in WI. In this presentation the project director will present, in a participatory way, the journey of working with those amazing leaders who come from 7 different countries. She will also present Proyecto Salud's model of social and systemic change through meaningful partnerships and a robust team of well-trained promotores who have been not only increasing access to health care but also working to alleviate socio-economic determinants of health. She will also share the lessons learned and will reflect on the most important points on how to support the growth of community leaders despite of the oppression and undeserved conditions they live in. Together with the project director, the Promotores de Salud will share their experience of working with the community and how they are successfully engaging the community members in designing campaigns and shifting policies that have been obstacles to good health. For more information on Proyecto Salud please visit: http://proyectosalud.shutterfly.com/

Learning Areas:
Advocacy for health and health education
Diversity and culture
Other professions or practice related to public health
Systems thinking models (conceptual and theoretical models), applications related to public health

Learning Objectives:
Describe a social change and community engagement model through the training and mentorship of Community Health Promoters. Demonstrate the uniqueness and importance of the Community Health Promoters in the elimination of health disparities and social/economic determinants of health. Discuss the important aspects of maintaining a successful program and how to support the continued growth of the community health promoters.

Keywords: Community Capacity, Health Workers Training

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: Ana Paula has vast experience working with public health and health promoters. She is an excellent speaker. She is the founder and director of Proyecto Salud. Ana was one of the finalists for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Community Leader Award 2011. She is also part of the WI Minority Health Leadership Council for the Department of Health and Human Services and the Region V Health Equity Council from the Federal Office of Minority Health.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.