Prostate cancer (PrCA) is the most commonly diagnosed non-skin cancer among men. African-American (AA) men in South Carolina have a PrCA death rate 150% higher than that of European-American (EA) men. This in-depth qualitative research explored AA men’s and women’s current practices, barriers, and recommended strategies for PrCA communication. A purposive sample of 43 AA men and 38 AA spouses/female relatives participated in focus groups (11 male groups; 11 female groups). A 19-item discussion guide was developed. Coding and analyses were driven by the data; recurrent themes within and across groups were examined. Findings revealed AA men and women agreed on key barriers to discussing PrCA; however, they had differing perspectives on which of these were most important. Findings indicate that including AA women in PrCA research and education is needed to address barriers preventing AA men from effectively communicating about PrCA risk and screening with family and healthcare providers.

The South Carolina Cancer Prevention and Control Research Network, in partnership with the South Carolina Primary Health Care Association, and Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), aims to promote evidence-based cancer interventions in community-based primary care settings. Partnership activities include (1) examining FQHCs’ readiness and capacity for conducting research, (2) developing a cancer-focused data sharing network, and (3) integrating a farmers’ market within an FQHC. These activities identify unique opportunities for public health and primary care collaborations.

African American men report poorer health than do White men and have significantly greater odds for developing chronic diseases partly because of limited physical activity. Understanding how to encourage healthy behaviors among African American men will be critical in the development of effective physical activity messages and programs. Guided by principles of cultural sensitivity and social marketing, this research examined middle-aged and older African American men’s recommended strategies for promoting physical activity to African American men of their age. The authors report results from. 49 interviews conducted with middle-aged (45–64 years) and older (65–84 years) African American men in South Carolina. Four groups of African American men were recruited; middle-aged active men (n = 17), middle-aged inactive men (n = 12), older active men (n = 10), older inactive men (n = 10). Themes related to marketing and recruitment strategies, message content, and spokesperson characteristics emerged and differed by age and physical activity level. Recommended marketing strategies included word of mouth; use of mass media; partnering with churches, businesses, and fraternities; strategic placement of messages; culturally appropriate message framing; and careful attention to selection of program spokespersons. Findings will help in the marketing, design, implementation, and evaluation of culturally appropriate interventions to encourage physical activity among middle-aged and older African American men in the South.

Prostate cancer (PrCA) is the most commonly diagnosed non-skin cancer among men. PrCA mortality in African-American (AA) men in South Carolina is ~50% higher than for AAs in the U.S as a whole. AA men also have low rates of participation in cancer research. This paper describes partnership development and recruitment efforts of a Community-Academic-Clinical research team for a PrCA education intervention with AA men and women that was designed to address the discordance between high rates of PrCA mortality and limited participation in cancer research. Guided by Vesey's framework on recruitment and retention of minority groups in research, recruitment strategies were selected and implemented following multiple brainstorming sessions with partners having established community relationships. Based on findings from these sessions culturally appropriate strategies are recommended for recruiting AA men and women for PrCA education research. Community-based research recruitment challenges and lessons learned are presented.

Introduction

To facilitate national efforts to maintain cognitive health through public health practice, the Healthy Brain Initiative recommended examining diverse groups to identify stakeholder perspectives on cognitive health. In response, the Healthy Aging Research Network (HAN), funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), coordinated projects to document the perspectives of older adults, caregivers of people with dementia, and primary care providers (PCPs) on maintaining cognitive health. Our objective was to describe PCPs’ perceptions and practices regarding cognitive health.

Methods

HAN researchers conducted 10 focus groups and 3 interviews with physicians (N = 28) and advanced practice providers (N = 21) in Colorado, Texas, and North Carolina from June 2007 to November 2008. Data were transcribed and coded axially.

Results

PCPs reported addressing cognitive health with patients only indirectly in the context of physical health or in response to observed functional changes and patient or family requests. Some providers felt evidence on the efficacy of preventive strategies for cognitive health was insufficient, but many reported suggesting activities such as games and social interaction when queried by patients. PCPs identified barriers to talking with patients about cognitive health such as lack of time and patient reactions to recommendations.

Conclusion

Communicating new evidence on cognitive health and engaging older adults in making lasting lifestyle changes recommended by PCPs and others may be practical ways in which public health practitioners can partner with PCPs to address cognitive health in health care settings.

Introduction

Growing evidence suggests that physical activity, healthy diets, and social engagement may promote cognitive health. Popular media helps establish the public health agenda. In this study, we describe articles about cognitive health in top-circulating women's and men's magazines.

Methods

To identify articles on cognitive health, we manually searched all pages of 4 top-circulating women's magazines and 4 top-circulating men's magazines published in 2006 and 2007 to identify articles on cognitive health. We examined article volume, narrative and illustrative content, information sources, and contact resources.

Results

Women's magazines had 27 cognitive health articles (5.32/1,000 pages), and men's magazines had 26 (5.26/1,000 pages). Diet was the primary focus (>75% of content) in 30% of articles in women's magazines and 27% of men's magazines. Vitamins/supplements were the focus of 15% of articles in men's magazines and 11% in women's magazines. Articles mentioned physical activity, cognitive activity, and social interaction, although these subjects were rarely the focus. Articles focused more on prevention than treatment. Topics were primarily "staying sharp," memory, and Alzheimer's disease. Colleges/universities were most often cited as sources; contacts for further information were rare. Most articles were illustrated.

Discussion

Although the volume of cognitive health articles was similar in the magazines, content differed. More articles in men's magazines discussed multiple chronic conditions (eg, Alzheimer's disease), whereas more in women's magazines discussed memory. Including more articles that focus on physical activity and direct readers to credible resources could enhance the quality of cognitive health communication in the popular media.

This paper describes the development, implementation, and evaluation of a pilot recycling campaign. The goal of the campaign was to increase people’s awareness and knowledge about recycling and the link between a healthy environment and the public’s health. A total of 258 individuals attended campaign week events and completed an initial survey. Results identified inconvenience of recycling facility locations as a key barrier to recycling. Post-campaign survey results revealed increased recycling of paper, plastic, glass, and cans (p < 0.05). The majority of participants “agreed” or “strongly agreed” that as a result of campaign messages they had greater awareness about recycling (88.4%) and their recycling efforts increased (61.6%).

Introduction

Older men are at increased risk for prostate cancer. As seniors turn to the Internet for cancer information, it is important that the resources they locate about lifestyle behaviors and screening are culturally appropriate and easy to understand. This study was a comprehensive analysis of prostate cancer risk as portrayed on the Internet with assessment of content readability and cultural sensitivity.

Methods

We selected Web sites about prostate cancer risk and prevention by comparing common sites across three top-rated search engines (Google, Yahoo!, and MSN). A total of 70 Web sites on prostate cancer containing a Web page on risk factors or prevention or both for racial and ethnic populations were included. We assessed readability of one page per Web site using Simple Measure of Gobbledygook (SMOG), Flesch-Kincaid (FK), and Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) measures. Cultural sensitivity of the Web page was evaluated using the Cultural Sensitivity Assessment Tool (CSAT) and questions from a cultural sensitivity checklist.

Results

Mean readability of Web pages was Grade 12.90 (high school graduate level) using SMOG and Grade 11.20 according to FK. Mean FRE was 45.04 (fairly difficult to read). The mean CSAT score was 2.78 and classified as culturally sensitive. Of the 36 Web pages considered culturally sensitive (CSAT >2.50), 75% did not portray images of representative racial or ethnic individuals as intended readers or as being at high risk for prostate cancer. Older adults and seniors were identified as intended readers on 73% of Web pages.

Conclusion

Online cancer resources are targeting appropriate age groups (high-risk older adults). However, the pages required fairly high-level reading skills and had limited cultural sensitivity. These factors make the pages unsuitable for diverse Internet users.

Farmers’ markets are community health promotion interventions that increase access to fresh fruits and vegetables. As farmers’ markets continue to develop, it is important to strategically locate them in settings that are accessible to populations disparately affected by health disparities. One potential setting is a community health center. The goal of this analysis is to extend existing research on community readiness to identify indicators of preparedness among community health centers for establishing onsite farmers’ markets. The sampling frame for the readiness assessment included all community health centers in South Carolina (N = 20) representing 163 practice sites. Data collection included two brief online surveys, in-depth key informant interviews, and secondary analysis of contextual data. Five themes related to readiness for establishing a farmers market at a community health center were identified: capacity, social capital, awareness of health problems and solutions, logistical factors, and sustainability. Findings from this study provide guidance to researchers and community health center staff as they explore the development of environmental interventions focused on reducing diet-related health conditions by improving access to healthy foods.