Developing a church-based diabetes prevention program with African Americans: focus group findings

Area of Science:

• Community-based participatory research (CBPR)
• Chronic disease prevention
• Public health interventions

Background:

• Diabetes disproportionately affects African American communities, particularly in rural areas.
• Church-based programs offer a promising avenue for health interventions in these communities.
• Understanding community-specific resources and barriers is crucial for effective program design.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify resources and barriers for implementing a church-based diabetes prevention program (DPP).
• To utilize a community-based participatory research (CBPR) approach in a rural African American church community.
• To inform the development of culturally sensitive and effective diabetes prevention strategies.

Main Methods:

• Conducted 4 focus groups with 22 key informants from a rural African American church community.
• Employed a community-based participatory research (CBPR) approach, involving community leaders as partners.
• Analyzed focus group transcripts using a content-driven immersion-crystallization approach.

Main Results:

• Participants discussed diabetes perceptions, concerns, prevention, and coping mechanisms, emphasizing religion.
• Program success factors included cultural sensitivity, focus on high-risk individuals, and leveraging church resources.
• Identified barriers: lack of knowledge, interest, and attendance concerns; proposed solutions: testimonials, local media, church committees, and support buddies.

Conclusions:

• A CBPR approach successfully engaged church members as partners in developing a DPP.
• Focus groups provided valuable insights into barriers and resources for program implementation.
• This CBPR methodology can be adapted for other church-based chronic disease prevention efforts in at-risk populations.