The Community Partnership/Engagement Core responds to Aims 2, 3, and 4 of our proposed C-SALUD. This Core aims to 1) Provide opportunities for meaningful involvement of the Latino community, particularly recent Latina immigrants (RLI) and Latina migrant workers (LMWs);2) conduct original research on the efficacy of health promotion and information dissemination approaches to improve the health of Latinas and eliminate HIV/AIDS and substance abuse health disparities;and 3) Establish a collaborative partnership between the academic institution and community groups and organizations. Through collaborations with community based agencies using a community based participatory research (CBPR) approach, this Core will accomplish the following goals: 1) Develop a community action plan for preventing HIV and substance abuse among RLI and LMW populations by improving access to HIV/AIDS prevention programs in these communities. 2) Increase the capacity of RLIs and LMWs to respond to the HIV epidemic at the local level through the provision of tools to educate and empower other women in the community, while also gaining the necessary knowledge and skills to seek funding for future research endeavors;and 3) Involve young members (ages 14-17) of these communities in health promotion and education outreach models for preventing HIV/AIDS and substance abuse. This Core, based on a CBPR approach, will emphasize empowering strategies that seek to enhance social and cultural determinants ofthe HIV disparities in Latina women. In agreement with the community leaders, a Community Partnership/Engagement Advisory Board (CPAB) will be created which will assist in the community needs assessment. Women from the community will be targeted to receive four interventions in the duration of the project.
The CBPR approach plays a significant role in reducing health disparities as it calls for acknowledging the strengths, resources, and skills of the community to address HIV, substance abuse, and public health issues. Results from this Core will assist in creating a community needs assessment and a plan of action, along with training community leaders on how to seek funding to enhance sustainability of their agencies.
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