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Maximizing the Potential of Partnerships to Provide Culturally-Sensitive Peer Health Education to Diabetic Patients
Meet Each Need with Dignity (MEND) is a non-profit poverty relief organization in Los Angeles, California. Services include food, clothing, and healthcare to clients living in poverty. With the support of volunteers, our free clinic seeks to address health disparities by providing medical, dental and eye care services to uninsured and underserved patients.
42% of our patients are diabetic and 52% are obese or morbidly obese. Many suffer other diet-related illnesses including hypertension and hyperlipidemia. Hence, we focus heavily on providing health education resources. As such, since 2012, 80 of our patients have completed an intensive 5-month Diabetes Health Education (DHE) course where patients attend monthly group classes, and participate in one-on-one sessions with a peer health educator. Their HgbA1c, Lipid Profile and BMI are also tracked.
MEND relies on partnerships to bring these resources to our patients. For example, through our partnership with Occidental College, undergraduate students and
promotoras complete a semester-long community health internship at MEND. Interns assume the role of peer health educator and community leader. Promotoras and our staff mentor the interns as they meet monthly with patients who are participating in the DHE course. These sessions highlight the reciprocal benefits of our partnership; our patients have an additional resource to better manage their disease while our interns have a unique opportunity to build relationships with patients and develop new skills. Our interns also contribute in other capacities which include analyzing class data, administrating class logistics, organizing awareness events and creating health education bulletin boards.
Learning Areas:
Public health or related educationLearning Objectives:
Describe a culturally-sensitive peer health-education teaching structure designed to best meet the needs of low-income, underserved, primarily monolingual Spanish-speaking diabetic patients.
Identify the consequences of health disparities on community health and develop interventions to address a need in the community.
Keyword(s): Diabetes, Health Disparities/Inequities
Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: As the MEND Medical Clinic Assistant Manager, I coordinate the Health Education Program. I proctor interns and volunteers and I am involved in health education curriculum development and implementation. I have been involved in mobilizing community members and providing grassroots community health education for years; both in my capacity at MEND and with other organizations such as Chicanos/Latinos for Health Education (CHE).
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.