Participation Type
Experiential Presentation
Session Title
Innovative Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) in Cincinnati’s Appalachia Neighborhoods
Session Abstract or Summary
This session of experiential presentations will highlight innovative community work being done in two of Cincinnati’s Appalachian neighborhoods. Both Price Hill, located on Cincinnati’s west side, and Carthage, located in northern Cincinnati, have challenges related to poverty, poor health outcomes, and a lack of access to health care resources. Both neighborhoods have also undergone significant demographic changes over the past few decades with the arrival of large numbers of Hispanic immigrants. Though challenges remain, both neighborhoods have reasons for optimism. Healthy Homes Block by Block (BbB), created by the community-academic partnership of Santa Maria Community Services and CCHMC, is an innovative, community-driven approach to improving health outcomes in Price Hill. BbB has been working in Price Hill since 2013 and has engaged 18 blocks with 105 households to deliver resources to 98% of households. BbB aims to generate knowledge about best practices to engage in place-based, cross-sector interventions to reduce and eliminate disparities. More recently, a collaboration between researchers and a community advocates called Communities Acting for Kids Empowerment (CAKE) have begun working in Carthage to identify community, school, and household “bright spots” for improving early childhood wellness. Funded through the Interdisciplinary Research Leaders program from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, CAKE seeks to create a network of community leaders in Carthage and Roselawn focused on improving the lives of children in these areas. The session will include members of both BbB and CAKE as they share successes, challenges, and future plans for improving health in these diverse neighborhoods.
Presentation #1 Title
Communities Acting for Kids Empowerment (CAKE): Finding the "Bright Spots"
Presentation #1 Abstract or Summary
Place is increasingly recognized as a critical contributor to health disparities, particularly for children. Place-based and community-based participatory research approaches that focus on neighborhood social and physical environments can address health disparities by engaging community stakeholders in a specified geography to improve community conditions. The discussant will describe Communities Acting for Kids Empowerment (CAKE), a collaborative effort of researchers, community organizers, and other local stakeholders to improve early childhood wellness in two Cincinnati neighborhoods, Carthage and Roselawn. CAKE is the product of the Interdisciplinary Research Leaders Fellowship program, which is funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and focused on uniting researchers and community organizers to improve community health. This experiential presentation will describe the major goals of CAKE, the creation of CAKE’s Community Leadership Team (CLT), which is made up various community advocates helping to guide the research process, and project challenges and lessons learned
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #1
Michael Topmiller, PhD is the Health GIS Research Specialist at HealthLandscape, a Division of the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP)
Presentation #2 Title
Healthy Homes Block by Block
Presentation #2 Abstract or Summary
Healthy Homes Block by Block (BbB), created by the community-academic partnership of Santa Maria Community Services and CCHMC is an innovative means of transforming how health and social needs of the most vulnerable people in Price Hill are met. Price Hill is a neighborhood with a high Appalachian population, unemployment rate, and adult illiteracy rate, with >40% of households with incomes at or below the federal poverty line.
This project aims to develop the network and the practices through which BbB can systematically deliver child health and wellbeing services to the most vulnerable and hardest to reach children and families in Price Hill.
BbB identifies and employs informal community leaders, Block Captains (BCs), who perform door-to-door personal outreach to support the needs and hopes of households with children <6 years and pregnant women. The current BbB package includes: 1) home safety equipment; 2) safe sleep space; 3) connection to medical home; 4) books and early childhood literacy tools; and (6) a family support plan. In its first year, 2013-14, BbB engaged 52 households on 5 blocks, delivering complete packages to 100% of households. In 2015-16, BbB engaged 18 blocks with 105 households and delivered complete packages to 98% of households. This year, BbB is working to scale across the entire neighborhood by June 30, 2018.
BbB is transforming how health and social needs of the most vulnerable populations are met and aims to generate knowledge about best practices to engage in place-based, cross-sector interventions to reduce and eliminate disparities.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #2
Allison Parsons, PhD is a Research Fellow in the Division of General and Community Pediatrics at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center. Her research focuses on addressing the impact of systemic inequity on the health and well-being of children and families through community based participatory approaches.
Presentation #3 Title
Discussing Community-Driven Work in Appalachia Neighborhoods
Presentation #3 Abstract or Summary
Appalachian populations face disparities in health, income, and education. Further, Appalachian populations often lack access to resources due to geographic isolation and other barriers. The previous two presentations have explored two different community based projects in two different Appalachian communities. In this experiential presentation, we will engage the audience to talk about projects that exist in other Appalachian neighborhoods in Cincinnati and elsewhere. We will also explore challenges that Appalachian populations face and the strengths and resources that Appalachian communities can and do leverage to face these challenges. We will also address challenges related to the changing demographics of many Appalachian neighborhoods, particularly as it relates to the growing Hispanic population in these areas. Finally, we hope to also talk about ways in which we can work together to learn from past experiences in working with Appalachian populations to address present and future needs in these neighborhoods.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #3
Carley Riley, MD, is an assistant professor in the Department of Pediatrics, Division of Critical Care Medicine at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center within the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine
Conference Subthemes
Health
Communities Acting for Kids Empowerment (CAKE): Finding the "Bright Spots"
Place is increasingly recognized as a critical contributor to health disparities, particularly for children. Place-based and community-based participatory research approaches that focus on neighborhood social and physical environments can address health disparities by engaging community stakeholders in a specified geography to improve community conditions. The discussant will describe Communities Acting for Kids Empowerment (CAKE), a collaborative effort of researchers, community organizers, and other local stakeholders to improve early childhood wellness in two Cincinnati neighborhoods, Carthage and Roselawn. CAKE is the product of the Interdisciplinary Research Leaders Fellowship program, which is funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and focused on uniting researchers and community organizers to improve community health. This experiential presentation will describe the major goals of CAKE, the creation of CAKE’s Community Leadership Team (CLT), which is made up various community advocates helping to guide the research process, and project challenges and lessons learned
