RESUMO
Female family caregivers of various global cultures provide basic care in health, social, emotional, and financial domains for family members with cancer and may sacrifice their own health to do so. To learn about role-related mood, health status self-perceptions, and burden of one cultural group, we used qualitative and quantitative approaches to study 34 Mexican American (MA) women who provided care for an ill family member with cancer. We report quantitative data on study variables and make comparisons with caregiver qualitative reports. Implications for health planning, service delivery, and future research with underserved, minority female caregivers are presented.
Assuntos
Cuidadores/psicologia , Efeitos Psicossociais da Doença , Família/etnologia , Americanos Mexicanos/etnologia , Neoplasias , Mulheres/psicologia , Adaptação Psicológica , Adulto , Afeto , Atitude Frente a Saúde/etnologia , Feminino , Identidade de Gênero , Nível de Saúde , Humanos , Saúde Mental , México/etnologia , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Neoplasias/enfermagem , Pesquisa Metodológica em Enfermagem , Pesquisa Qualitativa , Inquéritos e Questionários , Texas , Saúde da MulherRESUMO
This article describes results of year-1 implementation of the Salud Para Su Corazón (Health For Your Heart)-National Council of la Raza (NCLR) promotora (lay health worker) program for promoting heart-healthy behaviors among Latinos. Findings of this community outreach initiative include data from promotora pledges and self-skill behaviors, cardiovascular disease risk factors of Latino families, family heart-health education delivery, and program costs associated with promotora time. Participation included 29 trained promotoras serving 188 families from three NCLR affiliates in Escondido, California; Chicago, Illinois; and Ojo Caliente, New Mexico. Using several evaluation tools, the results showed that the promotora approach worked based on evidence obtained from the following indicators: changes in promotora's pre-post knowledge and performance skills, progress toward their pledge goals following training, recruiting and teaching families, providing follow-up, and organizing or participating in community events. Strengths and limitations of the promotora model approach are also discussed.
Assuntos
Doenças Cardiovasculares/prevenção & controle , Agentes Comunitários de Saúde , Promoção da Saúde/métodos , Hispânico ou Latino , Doenças Cardiovasculares/etnologia , Feminino , Humanos , Masculino , Avaliação de Programas e Projetos de Saúde , Fatores de Risco , Estados UnidosRESUMO
INTRODUCTION: In 2001, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute partnered with the National Council of La Raza to conduct a pilot test of its community-based outreach program Salud Para Su Corazón (Health for Your Heart), which aims to reduce the burden of morbidity and mortality associated with cardiovascular disease among Latinos. METHODS: The effectiveness of promotores de salud (community health workers) in improving heart-healthy behaviors among Latino families participating in the pilot program at seven sites was evaluated. Data on the characteristics of the promotores in the Salud Para Su Corazón program were compiled. Promotores collected data on family risk factors, health habits, referrals and screenings, information sharing, and program satisfaction from 223 participating Latino families (320 individual family members) through questionnaires. Paired t tests and chi-square tests were used to measure pretest-posttest differences among program participants. RESULTS: Results demonstrated the effectiveness of the promotora model in improving heart-healthy behaviors, promoting community referrals and screenings, enhancing information sharing beyond families, and satisfying participants' expectations of the program. The main outcome of interest was the change in heart-healthy behaviors among families. CONCLUSION: The community outreach model worked well in the seven pilot programs because of the successes of the promotores and the support of the community-based organizations. Successes stemmed in part from the train-the-trainer approach. Promotoria, as implemented in this program, has the potential to be integrated with a medical model of patient care for primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention.