Advocate Lutheran General Hospital, Park Ridge, IL : 60018: Improving Health Equity

Abstract

Background:

Diabetes disproportionately impacts the Hispanic community. Within the Advocate Lutheran General Hospital (ALGH) primary service area (PSA), ZIP code 60018 has twice the Hispanic population of other PSA ZIP codes. The 60018 initiative was developed to explore data on diabetes, partner with the 60018 Hispanic community, and improve the resident curriculum, thereby aligning our CHNA, population health, and GME goals.

Methods:

We reviewed the CHNA, ALGH hospital data, and community survey data and conducted a literature review. We conducted a family medicine residency tour of the community and recommended curriculum revisions after performing a curriculum and literature review. We established a partnership with St. Stephen Protomartyr Catholic Church, offering free diabetes screenings and diabetes education.

Results:

Through the partnership with St. Stephen Protomartyr Catholic Church, we obtained 23 completed surveys, conducted 3 focus groups with 20 participants, screened 23 patients, and held 4 education sessions with 12-15 attendees at each session. The screenings identified 8 individuals with an A1c of 5.7%-6.4% and 8 individuals with an A1c >6.5% (2 with an A1c >11%). The NI V work was incorporated into the new revision of ALGH’s CHNA. Grant money was secured to sustain the work, and family medicine residency curriculum changes were implemented.

Conclusion:

Our partnership with St. Stephen Protomartyr Catholic Church is a step toward preventing and reducing the impact of diabetes in the Hispanic community via culturally appropriate screening and diabetes prevention. However, cultural skepticism has a history, and trust takes time to build. ALGH has committed to long-term support of the work.

PROJECT MANAGEMENT PLAN – Collaborating with Our Hispanic Population to Improve Diabetic Education, Prevention, and Care.

Vision Statement	Our vision is to serve the health needs of the Hispanic community through a holistic approach with an emphasis on education as an immediate step toward preventing and reducing the impact of diabetes. Markers of success were as follows: Build sustainable partnerships with the 60018 Hispanic community Increase awareness and understanding of risk factors for and management of diabetes mellitus in the 60018 Hispanic community Improve education and involvement of residents and attending physicians in understanding disparities and improving health equity in this population
Team Objectives	ZIP code 60018 in our primary service area (PSA) has twice the Hispanic population of our other PSAs. It is well known that diabetes disproportionately impacts the Hispanic community. We first seek to understand the medical and community needs and resources and then to work with them to address their needs.
Success Factors	The most successful part of our work was obtaining executive leader sponsorship and grant dollars to sustain and expand the work of our NI V team. We were inspired by the people in the community who enthusiastically participated in the screening and educational sessions.
Barriers	The largest barrier encountered was the unrecognized challenges within our partner church. We worked to overcome this challenge by being patiently and respectfully persistent as well as flexible in developing a community health worker position when the church was unable to commit to a faith community nurse.
Lessons Learned	The single most important piece of advice to provide another team embarking on a similar initiative is to be prepared to listen to both the words and the nonverbal communication with an open and flexible mind.