A public health care plan's evolving model to enhance community assets and promote wellness in low-income communities of color

Sound investments in effective prevention are crucial. The nation’s largest public health care plan has prioritized prevention by empowering key community stakeholders and tailoring prevention efforts to populations with the greatest need. This presentation will present a conceptual framework for community-driven disease prevention and health promotion that may serve to inform healthcare systems looking to engage historically “hard to reach” low-income communities of color in quality prevention efforts.

L.A. Care maintains 11 Regional Community Advisory Committees (RCACs) comprised of key community stakeholders who reside or conduct business in Los Angeles County, CA. RCAC members meet regularly to participate in trainings, advise L.A. Care employees on the specific needs of their respective communities, and recruit community members into targeted prevention projects.  Approximately 323 community members actively participate in the RCACs and have made personal contact with over 100,000 low-income community members over the past four years. In addition, a cohort of lay health promoters has been trained by L.A. Care staff in peer health education, biometrics data collection, motivational interviewing, and health care reform.

Over the past three years L.A. Care staff, RCAC members, and health promoters have engaged approximately 950 high-risk participants in the Active Steps Project, a 16-week community-based physical activity and nutrition promotion project. These efforts have led to statistically significant improvements in participants’ weight, blood pressure, physical activity levels, and nutrition knowledge.. Lessons learned from Active Steps have informed best methods to engage participants, project curriculum, and peer/family support mechanisms.