Recorded presentation

Jessica A. Henry, The Southeast Community Research Center, P.O. Box 5731, Atlanta, GA 31107, 404.373.6688, J.Henry@CBPR.org and Marvin A. Crafter, Woolfolk Citizens Response Group, 901 Edward Street, Fort Valley, GA 31030.

Disparities in health between African Americans and the population as a whole represent a moral stain on our nation, and a mandate for action. This mandate is particularly urgent in the South, where by any health index, the region ranks at the bottom. Moreover, because the South’s healthcare infrastructure is among the weakest in the nation and the avenues for its citizens to improve their quality of life tortuous, innovative measures must be taken. Tools for Change: Building the Participatory Road to a Healthy Georgia (TFC) is facilitating the use and adoption of a new strategy in health research and intervention, Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) to address health disparities in the south. Our project begins with the perspective that the health challenges southerners face are largely based in socio-economic status, discrimination, and injurious work and home environments, that is, the “social determinants of health.”

This presentation will highlight successes and challenges in the first year of the TFC project. Specially, we will discuss efforts to build a sustainable network of community organizations, practitioners from Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), and government and non-governmental organizations in health, with the goal to reduce health disparities. Our effort is animated by participatory methods and focuses on enhancing leadership of HBCUs in health research and intervention, and in building capacity in African American communities to establish sustainable health agendas. Community representatives and researchers will provide their insights on the value and obstacles to creating sustainable partnerships as a path to eliminating health disparities.

Learning Objectives:

• Describe the unique function participatory projects can play in economically and politically marginalized regions.
• Recognize and discuss the role of minority institutions in creating sustainable and equitable partnerships for health endeavors in minority communities.
• Analyze the principles of participation and justice employed by partnering organizations.
• Assess the value of creating infrastructures or networks for sustaining CBPR activities.

Related Web page: www.cbpr.org

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: The Southeast Community Research Center, Morehouse College-Public Health Sciences Inst.,Woolfolk Citizens Response Group, Paine College
I have a significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.
Relationship: employed by the SCRC

Recorded presentation