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Health Advisors (health + advisor)

Distribution by Scientific Domains
Medical Sciences100%

Selected Abstracts

The Deep South Network for cancer control

CANCER, Issue S8 2006
Building a community infrastructure to reduce cancer health disparities
Abstract Given the recent advances in cancer treatment, cancer disparity between whites and African-Americans continues as an unacceptable health problem. African-Americans face a considerable disparity with regard to cancer incidence, survival, and mortality when compared with the majority white population. On the basis of prior research findings, the Deep South Network (DSN) chose to address cancer disparities by using the Community Health Advisor (CHA) model, the Empowerment Theory developed by Paulo Freire, and the Community Development Theory to build a community and coalition infrastructure. The CHA model and empowerment theory were used to develop a motivated volunteer, grassroots community infrastructure of Community Health Advisors as Research Partners (CHARPs), while the coalition-building model was used to build partnerships within communities and at a statewide level. With 883 volunteers trained as CHARPs spreading cancer awareness messages, both African-Americans and whites showed an increase in breast and cervical cancer screening utilization in Mississippi and Alabama. In Mississippi, taking into account the increase for the state as a whole, the proportion that might be attributable to the CHARP intervention was 23% of the increase in pap smears and 117% of the increase in mammograms. The DSN has been effective in raising cancer awareness, improving both education and outreach to its target populations, and increasing the use of cancer screening services. The National Cancer Institute has funded the Network for an additional 5 years. The goal of eliminating cancer health disparities will be pursued in the targeted rural and urban counties in Mississippi and Alabama using Community-Based Participatory Research. Cancer 2006. © 2006 American Cancer Society. [source]

Interview with a Quality Leader,Karen Davis, Executive Director of The Commonwealth Fund

JOURNAL FOR HEALTHCARE QUALITY, Issue 2 2009
Lecia A. Albright
Dr. Davis is a nationally recognized economist, with a distinguished career in public policy and research. Before joining the Fund, she served as chairman of the Department of Health Policy and Management at The Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, where she also held an appointment as professor of economics. She served as deputy assistant secretary for health policy in the Department of Health and Human Services from 1977 to 1980, and was the first woman to head a U.S. Public Health Service agency. Before her government career, Ms. Davis was a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington, DC; a visiting lecturer at Harvard University; and an assistant professor of economics at Rice University. A native of Oklahoma, she received her PhD in economics from Rice University, which recognized her achievements with a Distinguished Alumna Award in 1991. Ms. Davis is the recipient of the 2000 Baxter-Allegiance Foundation Prize for Health Services Research. In the spring of 2001, Ms. Davis received an honorary doctorate in human letters from John Hopkins University. In 2006, she was selected for the Academy Health Distinguished Investigator Award for significant and lasting contributions to the field of health services research in addition to the Picker Award for Excellence in the Advancement of Patient Centered Care. Ms. Davis has published a number of significant books, monographs, and articles on health and social policy issues, including the landmark books HealthCare Cost Containment, Medicare Policy, National Health Insurance: Benefits, Costs, and Consequences, and Health and the War on Poverty. She serves on the Board of Visitors of Columbia University, School of Nursing, and is on the Board of Directors of the Geisinger Health System. She was elected to the Institute of Medicine (IOM) in 1975; has served two terms on the IOM governing Council (1986,90 and 1997,2000); was a member of the IOM Committee on Redesigning Health Insurance Benefits, Payment and Performance Improvement Programs; and was awarded the Adam Yarmolinsky medal in 2007 for her contributions to the mission of the Institute of Medicine. She is a past president of the Academy Health (formerly AHSRHP) and an Academy Health distinguished fellow, a member of the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured, and a former member of the Agency for Healthcare Quality and Research National Advisory Committee. She also serves on the Panel of Health Advisors for the Congressional Budget Office. [source]

The Deep South Network for cancer control

CANCER, Issue S8 2006
Building a community infrastructure to reduce cancer health disparities
Abstract Given the recent advances in cancer treatment, cancer disparity between whites and African-Americans continues as an unacceptable health problem. African-Americans face a considerable disparity with regard to cancer incidence, survival, and mortality when compared with the majority white population. On the basis of prior research findings, the Deep South Network (DSN) chose to address cancer disparities by using the Community Health Advisor (CHA) model, the Empowerment Theory developed by Paulo Freire, and the Community Development Theory to build a community and coalition infrastructure. The CHA model and empowerment theory were used to develop a motivated volunteer, grassroots community infrastructure of Community Health Advisors as Research Partners (CHARPs), while the coalition-building model was used to build partnerships within communities and at a statewide level. With 883 volunteers trained as CHARPs spreading cancer awareness messages, both African-Americans and whites showed an increase in breast and cervical cancer screening utilization in Mississippi and Alabama. In Mississippi, taking into account the increase for the state as a whole, the proportion that might be attributable to the CHARP intervention was 23% of the increase in pap smears and 117% of the increase in mammograms. The DSN has been effective in raising cancer awareness, improving both education and outreach to its target populations, and increasing the use of cancer screening services. The National Cancer Institute has funded the Network for an additional 5 years. The goal of eliminating cancer health disparities will be pursued in the targeted rural and urban counties in Mississippi and Alabama using Community-Based Participatory Research. Cancer 2006. © 2006 American Cancer Society. [source]

Death and International Travel,The Canadian Experience: 1996 to 2004

JOURNAL OF TRAVEL MEDICINE, Issue 2 2007
Douglas W. MacPherson MD, FRCPC, MSc(CTM)
Background Death during international travel concerns several levels of the travel industry. In addition to the immediate effects for the traveler, their family and friends, the nature of travel-related mortality has important implications for pretravel health advisors and providers of medical care services. Methods The Consular Affairs Bureau, Foreign Affairs Canada provides information and assistance to Canadian civilians abroad. Beginning in 1995, the Consular Management and Operations System tracked Canadian deaths abroad notifications. The annual data for 1996 to 2004 was extracted for sex, age, and cause of death by location for all reports received. Results There were 2,410 reported deaths in Canadians abroad; reported sex was 32% female and 68% male, average age of 61.7 and 60.4 years, respectively. Recorded causes of death: natural (1,762), accidental (450), suicide (92), and murder (106). Country of death reflected the pattern of Canadian international travel for recreation, business, and ancestral linkages. Average age of natural death (66 years) distinguished it from all other causes of death: accidental (45), suicide (41), and murder (43). Conclusion Natural causes and suicide deaths may be anticipated or planned to occur abroad. The risk of death may be mitigated through personal knowledge and medical assessment and prevention strategies. Deaths due to vaccine-preventable diseases, exotic and infectious diseases were rare in this population. Consular services may be able to provide various types of support. Local laws and customs, as well as international regulations in health and quarantine govern other responsibilities such as funeral services and repatriation of the deceased to Canada. [source]