Racial & Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH) U.S.

West Virginia was recently awarded $ 415,390 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to eliminate racial and ethnic health disparities among minority populations. The funding was provided to the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources’ Office of Minority Health, which is one of 40 organizations selected from 22 states across the country.  The first funding cycle began in September 2007.

The five-year funding will support local efforts to address and overcome the unique causes of health disparities among specific ethnic populations and in key health areas. Locally, the CDC funding will benefit residents in Kanawha, McDowell, Mercer and Fayette Counties and will be used to address risk factors that contribute to the diabetes health disparity among African Americans.                          

The Office of Minorty Health is looking for community leaders and key city, county and state officials to participate in this project using the community based participatory approach to build REACH Coalitions that will conduct a community assessment based on the social determinants of health.  The coalition will develop a community action plan to begin addressing issues based on the assessment.  The action plan could address policy, environmental, social or other issues deemed by the community as critical in eliminating health disparities among African Americans.  The action plans will be implemented through funding from the Office of Minority Health.

For more information about this project, or to learn more about the Office of Minority Health, please contact Charlene Hickman at (304) 558-0644 or via e-mail at charlenehickman@wvdhhr.org.

                                                                                                                                                                        

 

 

Self Management in McDowell County

WVOMH, in conjunction with the Council of the Southern Mountains, the WV Coalition for Minority Health and the American Heart Association piloting a series of workshops with the sole purpose of providing health education and intervention strategies for minority citizens of McDowell County through a Self-Management model.

As individuals determined to be in the minority population experience higher rates of serious health problems; have no or inadequate health insurance coverage and possess limited access to state of the art medical interventions, specific awareness and educational opportunities must be provided to assure a decent quality of life for all citizens.

Stay tuned for more information on these workshops targeted to begin in October.