141st APHA Annual Meeting

In This section

287331
Improving pediatric asthma outcomes among immigrant communities in post-Katrina new orleans

Wednesday, November 6, 2013 : 8:30 AM - 8:50 AM

Stacey Denham, MSW, MPH, AE-C , Center for Minority Health and Health Disparities Research and Education, College of Pharmacy, Xavier University, New Orleans, LA
Kristi Isaac Rapp, PharmD, AE-C , College of Pharmacy, Xavier University of Louisiana, New Orleans, LA
Leonard Jack Jr., PhD, Msc , Center for Minority Health and Health Disparities Research and Education, College of Pharmacy, Xavier University of Louisiana, New Orleans, LA
Candice Wilson, MPH , College of Pharmacy, Xavier University, New Orleans, LA
Margaret Sanders, MSEd, AE-C , Center for Minority Health & Health Disparities, Xavier University, New Orleans, LA
Doryne Sunda-Meya, BS , Center for Minority Health and Health Disparities Research and Education, Xavier University of Louisiana, New Orleans, LA
Alfreda Porter , Center for Minority Health and Health Disparities, Research and Education, Xavier University of Louisiana, New Orleans, LA
Pamela Dixon , Center for Minority Health and Health Disparities, Research and Education, Xavier University of Louisiana, New Orleans, LA
Nancy Morris, PhD , Director of Contracting and Affiliations, Daughters of Charity Services New Orleans, New Orleans, LA
Floyd Malveaux, MD, PhD , Executive Director, Merck Childhood Asthma Network, Inc., Washington DC, DC
Hispanics have the highest rate of pediatric emergency department visits and hospital admission rates for asthma in the United States. Further, the disconnect in communication between patient and provider at discharge poses a barrier to continued care and asthma control. Since 2005, an influx of over 50,000 Hispanic immigrants moved to the New Orleans community from various origins such as: Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Cuba, Costa Rica and Puerto Rico. Navigating through a broken health care system in a foreign language and culture remains a challenge, thus widening the disparity gap among the immigrant asthmatic population in New Orleans. The Head-off Environmental Asthma in Louisiana (HEAL, Phase II) Project, is a partnership between Xavier University College of Pharmacy, the Children's Health Fund, and the Merck Childhood Asthma Network, through Daughters of Charity Services of New Orleans (DCSNO) clinics. The project provides pediatric care to a large portion of the New Orleans Hispanic community, and serves as a bridge to asthma care. Through these clinics, asthma educators incorporate culturally sensitive bilingual health literacy tools and communication methods into asthma education in an effort to improve asthma outcomes and increase asthma literacy among pediatric patients and their caregivers. This presentation will discuss communication methods used, demonstrate culturally sensitive tools for education, and discuss the importance of having a bilingual asthma educator for immigrant populations to improve patient and caregiver understanding, communication and literacy.

Learning Areas:
Administer health education strategies, interventions and programs
Implementation of health education strategies, interventions and programs
Planning of health education strategies, interventions, and programs
Provision of health care to the public
Public health or related research
Social and behavioral sciences

Learning Objectives:
Identify barriers to continued asthma care and control among non-native English speaking patients and caregivers. Describe 2 culturally sensitive learning tools used during the cross-cultural health education process. Discuss utilizing appropriate communication methods during the asthma education process contact can improve patient health outcomes.

Keywords: Asthma, Health Education

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have worked on multiple grant-funded community health and research projects as a program manager, project coordinator, health educator and social work/public health practitioner in the field of community health and asthma. My specific interests are the barriers to health behavior change in the chronic disease population, maternal and child health nutrition, and the development of holistic programs to promote healthy behavior change.
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.