Abstract
To address disproportionately high rates of diabetes morbidity and mortality in some of Chicago's medically underserved minority neighborhoods, a group of community residents, medical and social service providers, and a local university founded the Chicago Southeast Diabetes Community Action Coalition, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention REACH 2010 Initiative. A community-based participatory action research model guided coalition activities from conceptualization through implementation. Capacity building activities included training on: diabetes, coalition building, research methods, and action planning. Other activities sought to increase coalition members' understanding of the social causes and potential solutions for health disparities related to diabetes. Trained coalition members conducted epidemiologic analyses, focus groups, a telephone survey, and a community inventory. All coalition members participated in decisions. The participatory process led to increased awareness of the complexities of diabetes in the community and to a state of readiness for social action. Data documented disparities in diabetes. The participatory action research approach (a) encouraged key stakeholders outside of the health care sector to participate (e.g., business sector, church groups); (b) permitted an examination of the sociopolitical context affecting the health of the community; (c) provided an opportunity to focus on preventing the onset of diabetes and its complications; (d) increased understanding of the importance of community research in catalyzing social action aimed at community and systems change and change among change agents.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 309-323 |
| Number of pages | 15 |
| Journal | Public health reports |
| Volume | 118 |
| Issue number | 4 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2003 |
Funding
Phase II activities include capacity-building (e.g., development of a centralized diabetes patient tracking information system in hospitals and clinics; sustaining the diabetes coalition; expansion of linkages with health and human service organizations for client referrals and follow-up; and the establishment of Diabetes Self-Care Resource Centers); diabetes quality care improvement; community awareness and education; and a diabetes management and control educational program for people with diabetes or at risk for diabetes. As of this writing, two diabetes self-care centers are operating in the target communities. Community health promoters (trained lay health workers) manage the centers. In addition to regularly scheduled diabetes self-management education programs, nutrition classes, and social support, the Centers provide local residents with assistance on a variety of issues. They provide assistance to clients in navigating the health care system, assistance in accessing medication and devices such as glucose meters, and they organize health fairs in collaboration with other community agencies. Food insufficiency is also addressed. One of the centers is located at Centro Communitario Juan Diego, which maintains a food pantry; the center also provides interpreter services upon request for clients accessing health and human services. One of the centers is directly managed by the Latino Health Research Center, which also operates a Dulce Corazon (Sweet Heart) education program for women. Dulce Corazon, funded by the Illinois Department of Public Health, is a health education intervention targeted toward women for the purpose of preventing cardiovascular disease. The authors would like to acknowledge the hard work and commitment shown by members of the Chicago Southeast Diabetes Community Action Coalition, particularly the following key partners: Southside Health Consortium (now the Health Care Consortium of Illinois); Illinois Diabetes Control Program, Illinois Department of Human Services; Chicago Family Health Center; Jackson Park Hospital; Trinity Hospital; South Shore Hospital; Tellez Medical Center; Centro Comunitario Juan Diego; the Midwest Latino Health Research and Policy Center, Jane Addams College of Social Work, University of Illinois at Chicago; and the residents of Chicago's Southeast Side who participated in the work of the Coalition. The Coalition is funded by the Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH) 2010 Initiative of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Grant U50/CCU517388-01.
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health
