Academic-Community Partnership to Reduce Health Disparities in Infant Mortality

描述(由申请人提供)：最重要的人口健康指标之一是婴儿死亡率(IMR)，它反映了弗吉尼亚州的整体健康状况和获得优质医疗服务的情况。弗吉尼亚州的婴儿死亡率历来高于全国平均水平(2012年弗吉尼亚州健康统计数据)，黑人和白人婴儿之间仍然存在显著的种族/族裔差异(2002年至2006年，黑人和白人的死亡率分别为每1,000名新生儿中有14.4例和6.1例死亡；弗吉尼亚州健康统计数据2012)，以及整个社会经济和城乡梯度。在公共卫生中使用基于社区的参与性研究(CBPR)日益被认为是在社区一级实现变革的组成部分。我们建议使用创新的方法和已公布的最佳实践来组成社区联盟，成员包括学术机构谢南多大学(SU)、当地卫生部门(弗吉尼亚州卫生部费尔法克斯卫生区勋爵(LFHD))、以改善相关社区的健康和利益为使命的组织、受信任的社区成员以及传统上代表性不足的社区的同行领导人，以发展一种协作的、公平的伙伴关系，其使命是就社区推广的有效方法和社区对婴儿死亡率的看法展开对话。我们战略性地选择将我们的努力集中在LFHD的三个地区：温彻斯特市(WC)、弗雷德里克县(FC)和佩奇县(PC)，代表着居住在多样化的社会经济城市环境(WC)、医疗服务不足的农村环境(PC)以及部分农村、医疗服务不足的离大学最近的地区(FC)的居民。该联盟的活动将帮助社区组织确定在不同社区背景下解决婴儿死亡率问题的最佳做法；请求援助；共享资源；并在此过程中发展一种集体文化，以解决婴儿死亡率问题。该联盟的成果之一将是为LFHD社区提供健康教育的讲习班。这一合作联盟还将有一个咨询委员会，其首要目标将是维持正在进行的互动社区联盟，该联盟超越了这一学术-社区伙伴关系项目的任务。这个新成立的联盟和咨询委员会将最终达成一份谅解备忘录，由SU(受赠机构)、VDH LFHD、社区组织和受信任的社区成员组成，目的是实施CBPR项目，以解决#年婴儿死亡率的健康差距问题。 当地的地区。目前非常需要使用以社区为基础的方法来解决一个长期存在的公共卫生问题，即婴儿死亡率，在这个问题上，健康差距仍然很大。 而这一地区目前还没有建立起社区合作伙伴关系。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Among the most important population health indicators is the infant mortality rate (IMR) as a reflection of Virginia's overall health status ad access to quality medical care. Virginia has historically had higher IMRs than the national average (VDH Health Statistics 2012) and substantial racial/ethnic disparities remain between Black and White infants (14.4 and 6.1 deaths per 1,000 births for Blacks and Whites, respectively 2002-2006; VDH Health Statistics 2012) and across socioeconomic and rural/urban gradients. The use of community-based participatory research (CBPR) in public health is increasingly recognized as an integral part of effecting change at the community level. We propose to use innovative methods and published best practices to form a community coalition comprised of an academic institution, Shenandoah University (SU), a local health department (Lord Fairfax Health District (LFHD) of the Virginia Department of Health (VDH)), organizations with a mission in improving the health and interests of the relevant communities, trusted community members, and peer leaders of traditionally underrepresented communities to develop a collaborative, equitable partnership whose mission is to begin a dialogue on effective methods of community outreach and community perceptions of infant mortality. We have strategically chosen to focus our efforts on three regions within LFHD: Winchester city (WC), Frederick county (FC), and Page county (PC), representing residents residing in a diverse socioeconomic urban setting (WC), a medically underserved rural setting (PC), and a partially rural, medically underserved, region nearest the University (FC). The activities of the coalition will help community organizations determine best practices in addressing infant mortality in varying community contexts; request assistance; share resources; and in doing so, develop a collective culture to address infant mortality. One outcome of the coalition will be workshops to provide health education to communities in LFHD. This collaborative coalition will also have an Advisory Board whose overarching goal will be maintaining the ongoing interactive community coalition that transcends the tasks of this academic-community partnership project. This newly formed coalition and advisory board will culminate in a memorandum of understanding between SU (grantee institution), VDH LFHD, community organizations and trusted community members for the purpose of carrying out a CBPR project to address health disparities in infant mortality in the local region. There is currently a great need to use community-based methods to address a long-standing public health problem, infant mortality, where substantial health disparities persist and for which there are no current collaborative community partnerships in this region.