Session Information
Session Type: Abstract Submissions (ARHP)
Background/Purpose:
Lupus affects Asian Americans 2-3 times more than their white counterparts, with studies demonstrating health disparities in severity and outcomes. Our hospital’s national support and education program for Asian Americans with lupus and their loved ones, as part of our community service plan initiative, piloted a collaborative effort to raise awareness about lupus as an Asian American health concern with community providers in healthcare and social services.
Methods:
Our program identified and formulated collaborative partnerships with three key stakeholders with longstanding histories of servicing a lower socioeconomic and immigrant population within the Asian American community. We coordinated and delivered specifically designed professional education for medical practitioners in primary care, pediatrics, obstetrics-gynecology, and psychiatry, in addition to programs for health professionals in women’s health and mental health, and social services providers. Post-program measures assessed the degree to which these programs contributed to professional learning, enhanced clinical practice, increased interest to learn more about lupus, and overall degree of satisfaction. We also launched an e-News publication as a forum for professionals serving the Asian American community.
Results:
A total of 10 lupus education programs and 2 e-News publications were delivered in 2010-2012. Seven of these programs were for healthcare providers on lupus topics relevant to their professional interests and areas of practice. Of the 94 evaluations completed, 98% strongly agreed/agreed that the presentations contributed to their professional learning, and 96% strongly agreed/agreed that the content would enhance their clinical practice. Responses to open-ended questions underscored how the presentations contributed to their care of lupus patients, for example, “to use helpful clinical pearls in future clinical assessment”, and “awareness of subtle presentation of the disease, early diagnosis, treatment and maintenance would result in better outcome.”
For the 3 programs tailored for social service providers, the 63 evaluations submitted reflected that 97% strongly agreed/agreed that their awareness of lupus had increased as a result of these presentations. Regarding what was most learned, responses included “what lupus is, and how much of an impact it is to patients and family”, and “lupus can affect anyone and differently.”
The pilot issue of our e-News was sent to 150 recipients; the 2nd issue reached > 400 interested professionals, an increase of 266%.
Conclusion:
Early identification and appropriate treatment of lupus may significantly influence its progression and impact. To our knowledge, this is the first initiative directed toward increasing knowledge of lupus for providers serving the Asian American community. Our professional education, with topics specifically relevant to providers’ areas of practice, yielded a positive impact in potential care outcomes. The increase in our e-News reach also demonstrated an interest among providers in learning more about lupus as an Asian American health issue, as well as the potential power of this form of messaging.
Disclosure:
M. L. N. Tran,
None;
R. Horton,
None;
M. D. Lockshin,
None;
A. Yee,
Pfizer, Abbvie, Abbott,
6.
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ACR Meeting Abstracts - https://acrabstracts.org/abstract/lupus-education-for-providers-serving-the-asian-american-community-hospital-for-special-surgerys-lantern-lupus-asian-network-initiative/