Department of Family Medicine and Community Health

 

Asian Health Initiatives

 

Since 2004, the Department of Family Medicine and Community Health has provided outreach, education and direct services to Asian communities throughout the greater Philadelphia area, under the coordination of Dr. Giang Nguyen. These activities provide an avenue for the department to give back to the community while providing avenues through which we can educate students and residents. At the same time, it provides opportunities for us to learn how to address the health disparities faced by these often under-served and under-studied communities.

 

Group Members

 

 

 

Current Research and Grant-Funded Projects

 

1. "Media Partnerships for Community Engagement in Southeast Asian Health"   Partnerships with WHYY Public Broadcasting, the Southeast Asian Mutual Assistance Associations Coalition (SEAMAAC), Thomas Jefferson University Department of Health Policy, and Temple University Center for Intergenerational Learning.  Coordinator: Ethan Nguyen     CHECK OUR PROJECT PHOTO BLOG!!
2. Southeast Asian Health Survey: a community-based participatory research project in collaboration with the Southeast Asian Mutual Assistance Associations Coalition (SEAMAAC).
3. Preventive health attitudes and behaviors of Vietnamese Americans. Lead Investigator: Jennifer Levy
4. Cancer information seeking behaviors among older Vietnamese immigrants
5. Community connectedness and mental health among Southeast Asian immigrants in late life
6. Vietnamese American ethnic print media: a content analysis

 

 

Some Other Examples of Past and Present Activities

 

1. Health Fairs and Vaccination Clinics
2. Cancer Control activities and advocacy through partnership with American Cancer Society
3. HIV/AIDS outreach and advocacy through partnership with ASIAC, AIDS Services in Asian Communities
4. Public health education via Vietnamese Public Radio through partnership with Boat People S.O.S. Pennsauken/Camden NJ
5. Training of medical students through partnership with Asian Pacific American Medical Student Association (APAMSA) and the Asian American Health Care Network
6. Training of medical, public health, and undergraduate students interested in research concerning the health of Asians and Asian Americans

 

   

 

Date	Activity	Location	# people	Fam Med Providers/Staff	Partners
03/27/2008	Breast and Cervical Cancer Workshop	Wachovia, Center City Philadelphia	15	Giang Nguyen	National Association of Asian American Professionals; American Cancer Society
03/07/2008	Presentation about public health and immigration to high school students vfrom Buxton School (Williamstown MA)	University of Pennsylvania	19	Giang Nguyen, Ethan Nguyen
11/25/2007	Free Flu/Pneumonia Vaccination	Vietnamese Hung Vuong Association	164 doses	Giang Nguyen, Ethan Nguyen	APAMSA, Philadelphia Dept of Public Health
11/11/2007	Free Flu Vaccination	St. Helena Church	131 doses	Giang Nguyen, Ethan Nguyen	APAMSA, Philadelphia Dept of Public Health
05/20/2007	Breast Health Awareness... What Asian Women Need to Know	Philadelphia	850	Giang Nguyen	ACS, Susan G. Komen for the Cure
02/04/2007	Free Flu Vaccination at Health Fair	Vietnamese Hung Vuong Association	20 doses (50 attended event)	Richard Neill, Joe Gallo	Health Promotion Council, Cambodian Association of Greater Philadelphia, Intercultural Family Services, St. Thomas Aquinas Church, TJU Nursing School
02/02/2007	Colorectal Cancer Screening Education	ACS Asian Advisory Council	25	Giang Nguyen	ACS
10/12/2006	Free Flu/Pneumonia Vaccination	St. Helena Church, Vietnamese Hung Vuong Association, and Bo De Temple	338 doses	Elisa Daniels, Giang Nguyen	APAMSA, Philadelphia Dept of Public Health
05/21/2006	Breast Health Awareness... What Asian Women Need to Know	Philadelphia	925	Giang Nguyen	ACS, Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation
05/06/2006	Blood sugar screening	St. Thomas Aquinas Church	50	Giang Nguyen	Health Promotion Council, APAMSA
10/2005	Free Flu/Pneumonia Vaccination	St. Helena Church and Bo De Temple	450 doses	Laura McCray, Joe Gallo, Huan Vu, Terry Owen, Giang Nguyen	APAMSA, Philadelphia Dept of Public Health
10/10/2005	Colorectal Cancer Workshop	Vietnamese Hung Vuong Association	15	Giang Nguyen	Health Promotion Council
06/25/2005	Cholesterol/Blood pressure screening	St. Thomas Aquinas Church		Giang Nguyen	Health Promotion Council, APAMSA
05/22/2005	Breast Cancer - What Asian Women Need to Know	Philadelphia	500	Giang Nguyen	ACS, Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation
05/21/2005	Cholesterol/Blood pressure screening	St. Thomas Aquinas Church		Giang Nguyen	Health Promotion Council, APAMSA
04/2005	"Tell-a-Friend" Breast Cancer Workshop	Abington Memorial Hospital	5	Giang Nguyen	Montgomery County Dept of Health, American Cancer Society/ACS
10/2004	Free Flu/Pneumonia Vaccination	St. Helena Church and Bo De Temple	241 doses	Huan Vu, Giang Nguyen	APAMSA, Philadelphia Dept of Public Health

 

   

 

 

 

Selected Publications

• Nguyen GT, Bellamy SL.  Cancer Information Seeking Preferences and Experiences: Disparities Between Asian Americans and Whites in the Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS).  Journal of Health Communication.  2006. 11(supp 1):173-180.
• Nguyen GT, Bowman MA.  Culture, language, and health literacy:  Communicating about health with Asians and Pacific Islanders.  Family Medicine 2007;39(3):208-210 (Invited Editorial about article: Wu APW, Burke A, LeBaron S.  Use of traditional medicine by immigrant Chinese patients.  Family Medicine 2007;39(3):195-200.)
• Nguyen GT, Barg FK, Armstrong K, Holmes JH, Hornik RC. Cancer and communication in the healthcare setting: Experiences of older Vietnamese immigrants, a qualitative study. Journal of General Internal Medicine. In press.

 

 

 

Selected Presentations

• Nguyen GT.  Can you hear me now?  Health communication and diverse communities. Thomas Jefferson University.  September 28, 2006. Philadelphia PA
• Nguyen GT.  Disparities in cancer-related health communication for Asian American communities. NIH Director’s Council of Public Representatives Spring 2007 Meeting. National Institutes of Health.  April 20, 2007. Bethesda MD
• Rapkin B, Nguyen GT, Otanez MG, Morris AM, Scott SM, Hart A, Perlmutter J. Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR). American Cancer Society Conference on Career Development in Applied and Clinical Research. November 16, 2007.  Orlando FL

 

 

 

In the News

• The Daily Pennsylvanian, 3/24/2008, page 5

 

 

 

Asian Language Health Resources

• SPIRAL: Selected Patient Information Resources in Asian Languages spiral.tufts.edu
• US Committee for Refugees and Immigrants - Health Brochures www.refugees.org/hltoolkit
• American Cancer Society: Asian language materials www.cancer.org/docroot/ASN/ASN_0.asp
• HIV and Hepatitis C patient information: www.multiculturalhivhepc.net.au/
• Infectious Disease information (Victoria, Australia) www.health.vic.gov.au/ideas/diseases/language
• Hawaii AIDS Education Center (actually has info about other health topics, too) www.hawaii.edu/hivandaids/links_nonenglishbrochures.htm

 

 

 

Other Resources

• Cultural Competency Resources (API American Health Forum) http://www.apiahf.org/resources/culturalcompetency.htm

 

 

 

Partners/Collaborators

• ASIAC (AIDS Services in Asian Communities) www.asiac.org
• SEAMAAC (Southeast Asian Mutual Assistance Associations Coaltion, Inc.) www.seamaac.org
• Vietnamese Hung Vuong Association
• St. Helena Church Vietnamese Catholic Community
• American Cancer Society, Pennsylvania Division, Southeast Region, Asian Outreach Programs
• Philadelphia Department of Public Health, Adult Immunization Program
• WHYY Public Broadcasting www.whyy.org
• Thomas Jefferson University Department of Health Policy www.jefferson.edu/dhp
• Temple University Center for Intergenerational Learning templecil.org

 

 

 

Many thanks to our financial supporters, past and present

• American Cancer Society
• Benton Foundation
• Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics at Penn
• NIH, National Center for Minority Health and Health Disparities
• Pfizer Medical and Academic Partnerships
• The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
• Sylvan M. Cohen Institute on Aging at Penn
• Temple Center for Asian Health
• U. of Pennsylvania EPIC Center of Excellence in Cancer Communication Research

 

 

 

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