Evaluating the Sustainability of THE NORTH TEXAS SALUD PARA SU CORAZON PROGRAM: Effects of the Program on Promotores and the Partner Organizations

Kourosh, Elham R., Evaluating the Sustainability of the NORTH TEXAS SALUD PARA SU CORAZON PROGRAM: Effects of the Program on Promotores and the Partner Organizations. Doctor of Public Health, May 2008, 117 pp., 1 table, bibliography, 47 titles. In the light of the rapid growth of the Latino population in Texas, the need for culturally and linguistically appropriate health promotion programs for Latinos is becoming apparent. It is essential that these programs address CVD prevention for this population, since the results of an assessment conducted by the City of Fort Worth in 1998 confirmed that the Latino population in the area is heavily burdened by CVD risk factors such as diabetes and lack of physical activity. It is also important, in light of limited resources for health promotion, that the community health impacts of such programs be sustainable. The purpose of this research was to evaluate the sustainability of the North Texas Salud Para Su Corazon program, by examining two major elements of the program for sustainability: (1) the professional development and work-related experiences of the promotores who participated during the 3 years of operation of the program, and (2) the continuation of the activites that were supported by the network of community partner organizations during the initial period. North Texas Salud Para Su Corazon was a heart health promotion program which trained and mobilized promotores in the Fort Worth area from 2001 to 2004. Guided interviews with a key informant (project director), 14 promotores, and nine partner organization representatives were analyzed using qualitative methods and showed that project activities and effects endured beyond the funding period of the project. Promotores continued to disseminate heart health information after the end of the project, and organizational structures are evolving to support promotora activities, enabling the health effects of the project to continue in the community. Recommendations were made for further support of these activities and included university sponsored studies of the promotores’ work, annual conferences and award ceremonies highlighting their service, and the development of funding for continuous education and job creation programs involving promotores in the health care sector.