The overall purpose of the Deep South RCMAR is to reduce health disparities between African American and White older adults in the region of the country where the majority of older African Americans (AAs) live and health disparities have been particularly persistent. The ultimate goal will be to eliminate such disparities. The proposed new Core D (Analysis Core-AnC) will support the activities of the Deep South RCMAR in the areas of measurement and secondary data analysis. The AnC will leverage existing expertise, data resources, and infrastructure at our four partnering institutions (Morehouse School of Medicine, Tuskegee University, the University of Alabama, and the University of Alabama at Birmingham) to enhance the capacity of the Deep South RCMAR to conduct research in the areas of measurement and secondary data analysis. To achieve our aims, we will pursue a three-fold strategy. First, we will advance science by conducting research and supporting research activities that involve: a) Assessing measurement equivalence of health-related measures for older African Americans in the Deep South; and b) Analyzing secondary datasets with a focus on older African Americans in urban and rural settings. Specifically, we will pursue two projects during the first 2-years of inclusion of the AnC in the Deep South RCMAR. One project will examine the measurement equivalence of CAHPS cultural competency and health literacy scales among older African Americans and Whites in Alabama, and the second project will focus on local area variations of health disparities by analyzing Medicaid data and other secondary datasets. Second, we will collaborate with the IDC and the CLC in the training and mentoring of Deep South RCMAR Scholars by conducting workshops in measurement techniques and secondary data analysis, and facilitating linkage of Scholars with methodological, biostatistical, and analytical resources. Finally, we will collaborate with the RCMAR Coordinating Center in the dissemination of culturally informed measures and secondary data analysis techniques relevant to minority aging.
There is a growing need for the development of culturally informed and scientifically valid measurement tools with a focus on older African Americans in urban and rural settings. Similarly, there is a significant need for secondary data analysis to inform the development and evaluation of interventions to address aging health disparities issues. The Deep South RCMAR is particularly well positioned to pursue these areas of research.
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