Migrant Health Promotion Promoviendo Vidas Saludables
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Migrant Health Promotion Promoviendo Vidas Saludables Annual Report 2003-2004 2003 and 2004 were eventful years at Migrant Health Promotion. I n 2003, we celebrated twenty years of service to migrant and seasonal farmworkers, their families and their rural communities. Across the country, communities, health professionals and scholars increasingly value and recognize Promotores and Promotoras for their contributions. In 2004 funding challenges continued. Promotores(as), staff members and Board members worked together to adapt to the changed environment and to maintain as many critical programs and services as possible. Migrant Migrant Health Health Promotion deeply appreciates the dedication, Promotion Promoviendo Vidas Saludables persistence and good will of staff, Promotores(as), Promotores(as) de Salud or Camp Health Aides are community members who participate in health farmworker communities, funders and collaborators as training. They use their skills to educate and advocate for their peers, helping them find and use we continue to meet these challenges and face the health information and care, despite poverty, frequent mobility and language and cultural differences. future together. We thank you! Promotores(as) improve health by increasing access to existing services and by working to change the systems and conditions that make healthy living difficult. Mission MICHIGAN 224 West Michigan Avenue Migrant and seasonal farmworkers provide affordable Saline, MI 48176 (734) 944-0244 food to the nation, often at the expense of their own [email protected] TEXAS P.O. Box 337 health. Migrant Health Promotion is committed to Progreso, TX 78579 (956) 565-0002 strengthening the capacity of farmworker families and [email protected] Visit us online at their communities to improve their health through www.migranthealth.org! PHOTOGRAPHY collaborative peer education and advocacy. Thanks to the Migrant Health Promotion staff, and to Charlotte Raymond and the Bristol-Myers Squibb company for donating Charlotte's talents. “Abro mi corazon y ayudo a la gente buscar una solución, asi como hicieron conmigo. I open my heart and help people find solutions, just like they did with me” Miriam Perez, Promotora “I feel like a community leader. No one can defeat me. I feel very strong,“It’ muchs a good more thing thatthan someone before is Iin was the role a of PromotoraCamp. Health Through Aide becausethe experience that way the of camp being residents a Promotora, I’ve realized how muchcan we ask can someone achieve.” they trust.” Marisol Luevano,Zulema CrPromotorauz, Promotora Highlights Health Centers embraced the Promotor(a) model In honor of our 20th Anniversary, Migrant Health and initiated new programs in 2003 and 2004, Promotion received two national awards. One thanks to the resources available through the was presented by the National Association of Capacity-Building Assistance Program. New Community Health Centers and recognized programs included a Promotor(a) dental health “Outstanding Service in Migrant Health.” A program in Oregon, a teen program in second award, collectively sponsored by the California, a mental health and substance abuse National Center for Farmworker Health, the program in Missouri, and general health Migrant Clinicians Network, Farmworker Health Promotor(a) programs in Washington and Kansas. Services and the Farmworker Justice Fund acknowledged “20 Years in the Advancement of The REACH Promotora Community Coalition, Lay Health Outreach.” focused on diabetes prevention and management, continued to improve the health Migrant Health Promotion was honored by the of its community. Walking group participants United States-Mexico Border Health Commission who met the target of 150 minutes per week of with the “Border Models of Excellence” 2003 physical activity increased from 19.5% to 33.1%. award for its work with partner organizations, Cooking class participants increased their fruit Promotores(as) and community members in the and vegetable intake, consumed less whole milk REACH Promotora Community Coalition. In and more 2%, 1% and skim milk. Participating addition, Migrant Health Promotion was a finalist Health Centers increased the number of HbA1c for the National Occupational Research Agenda tests, microalbuminuria tests, foot examinations, Partnering Award for Worker Health and Safety. and referrals for dilated eye examinations. School Health Advisory Councils improved the nutritional quality of school lunches and worked to limit availability of sugary snacks and beverages in schools. Camp Health Aide Programs Improving health from within labor camps and communities he Camp Health Aide Program is a winner of the national “Models that T Work” Campaign. Developed in 1983, the program trains farmworkers as Camp Health Aides, or Promotoras and Promotores, within migrant labor camps and communities. Camp Health Aides offer their peers education, support and direct links to Migrant and Community Health Centers and other community-based services. The program forms a solid foundation for all of our work with farmworkers and their rural communities. Selected Outcomes – 2003 and 2004 In the State of Michigan Prenatal Care Outreach trained and mentored eight Camp Health Aides and Advocacy Camp Health Aide Program, in eye health and community-based research. 45 Camp Health Aides from five migrant Health Camp Heath Aides reached 300 farmworkers Centers completed 6,256 one-on-one health with information on eye health and protective interventions among their peers. The Promotoras eyewear. Preliminary results indicate use of ensured that: 83% of newborns were breastfed; protective eyewear increased among observed 97% of pregnant women received prenatal care; farmworkers from less than 1% to between 81% of children five and under were fully 29% and 77% for most task-specific risks they immunized; and that 65% of women served by encountered while working. the Program either had had a Pap smear within the past year or received one during the season. Farmworker Doula training and health By comparison, only 63% of Michigan women in education materials were promoted nationally all racial groups and occupations breastfed their at Migrant Stream Forums, with the goal of babies. Statewide, only 61.5% of Michigan establishing the Farmworker Doula Program Hispanic women received timely prenatal care. as a replicable model. The Southeast Michigan Camp Health Aide Program completed a four-year collaboration with the Great Lakes Center for Occupational and Environmental Safety and Health at the University of Illinois at Chicago. The Program “With corn, the leaves will slice you just like a paper cut. I know it causes eye injuries – I’ve been to the emergency room twice myself. Our workers wear safety glasses every time they go into the cornfield. They’re all covered up – they’ve got their hats, bandannas, and their safety glasses peeking out.” Chris Burnor, Legacy Brand Hybrids “I thought I was not going to be able to get the message across about early detection and prevention. Thanks to all the training I received, I was prepared to take the much needed information to the community, my community.” Marisol Luevano, Promotora Colonia Health Worker Programs Advancing community health in the border region he Colonia Health Worker Programs offer seasonal and year-round T programming to experienced Promotoras and Promotores in the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas. They provide a wealth of community-based health promotion services in isolated colonias – rural, unregulated neighborhoods common in the border region. The longer season allows for more intense training and outreach, yet permits farmworkers who migrate to participate. Selected Outcomes – 2003 and 2004 Eight seasonal Promotoras in the the Nuestra and, in 2004, 75 Promotores(as) from other Salud (Our Health) Breast and Cervical Cancer programs participated in a full-day child abuse Early Detection and Prevention Program prevention seminar, thanks to the Familias Fuertes provided individualized education and facilitated Program. access to cancer screening and treatment in South Texas. The Promotoras completed over Eight Promotores(as) in the Protégete (Protect 2,970 individual encounters in 2003-2004, Yourself) Border HIV Prevention Program included 1,618 participants in small gro-up reached a total of 2,465 at-risk community presentations and completed 2,200 women’s members with information about HIV/AIDS, risk health assessments. In 2003 alone, as a result factors and prevention in 2003-2004. Pre- and of the Promotoras’ work, over 400 women post-questionnaires demonstrated a 25% increase received free or low-cost gynecological exams, in knowledge of HIV transmission and prevention mammograms or other services. among select participants in Promotor(a)-led education sessions. Promotores(as) also provided Within the Familias Fuertes y Saludables in-home HIV testing and counseling to community (Strong and Healthy Families) Program, initiated members unable to access testing facilities and in 2002, three Promotoras bring parenting reached 99% of those tested with post-test information and resources door-to-door. This counseling. In 2004, in a new initiative, program is unique in that migrating Promotores(as) Protégete Promotores(as) collaborated with the serve families year-round, both in colonias in Valley AIDS Council to offer outreach at high-risk Texas and in farm labor camps in Michigan and locations and at the bridges between the US and Ohio during the migrant season. In