Development and implementation of a culturally and linguistically-centered nutrition education program for promotora-researchers to foster community health education and outreach in Texas border colonias

Promotora-researchers expressed the need for nutrition-related knowledge and skill-building to better equip them in the Texas border colonias they serve, where health disparities, food insecurity, and obesity are critical problems within Mexican-origin populations. Efficacy of a collaborative community-based initiative, Promotora Nutrition Empowerment Initiative, was examined as an opportunity structure designed to empower promotoras to engage in nutrition education and outreach within their communities. An initiative was developed for seven promotora-researchers in the Construyendo Communidades Fronterizas Mas Sanas (Building Healthier Border Communities) research and outreach program. This collaborative, community-based effort provided a framework for evidence-based, culturally and linguistically-centered education and skill building modules aimed at: 1) increasing knowledge of nutrition and nutrition-related topics; 2) empowering promotoras to educate their communities; and 3) encouraging continued community education and outreach. Eight educational workshops were comprised of in-depth nutrition education modules with four hours of didactic education and hands-on activities per month (December 2012 – July 2013). Student’s paired sample t-test and Wilcoxon signed-rank test were used to compare pre- and post-test nutrition knowledge scores for each workshop. Nutrition knowledge scores were significantly improved (p=0.02) from pre- to post-test. Medial assessment focus group analysis suggested that nutrition education workshops provided: 1) intrinsic worth; 2) cultural and community focus; 3) personal and professional impact; and 4) empowerment. Results suggest that collaborative community efforts involving promotoras empower and allow for greater opportunities for outreach and delivery of evidence-based community health education to colonias residents.