One-Page Position Paper
PDF printable version
Montagnard women are an unrecognized source of community expertise
THE IMPORTANCE OF CREATING a community health team similar to the proven “promotoras de salud” model became clear for a core group of stakeholders as discussion about health research into the Montagnard population turned from plans into action in Fall 2010. Training a team is a cost effective way of building capacity, improving outcomes of current research and consolidating and leveraging the value of past studies. Funding and empowering community mothers builds trust and makes regular data collection less intrusive.
• We created regular income for two lay health workers through a UNCG grant for researching food insecurity from Dr Jigna Dharod and through Center for Youth, Family, and Community Partnerships’ AmeriCorps positions.
• Candidates selected based on status (experienced mothers), language abilities (5-7), English proficiency or capacity to learn, class, education (preliterate – basic), and ability to immediately connect to the targeted audience — Montagnard mothers.
• Team approach was chosen to reflect cultural preferences.
• Legitimizing the team in the community — crucial for this historically contentious population — primarily carried out by mothers talking to mothers across tribal, religious, and language divisions.
Exemplary Teamwork
• The team helped a Congregational nurse get HealthServe to a hard-to-reach Bahnar family
• Assisted an American neighborhood residents help a homeless Jarai man
• Accompanied an American volunteer into a Bahnar home and helped the family get emergency food
• Set up interview appointments for researchers or clients and made sure they were met
• Passed on information to community members about a free diabetes health clinic and vision test
• Facilitated ESOL discussions at MDA on blood pressure, trauma, depression and reproductive health
• Exemplified positive lifestyle changes such as active participation in cultural events, exercise and gardening
• Demonstrated the promotoras de salud model can work for the Montagnard population
• Communicated effectively with American agencies and Montagnard community members
• Uncovered numerous questions, problems, attitudes and opinions not well understood by American agencies
• Created a comprehensive list of food stores frequented by the community
• Created a list of vegetables and other food ingredients
Insights into refugee households and community
• Explained specific dietary habits and food preparation practiced in Montagnard households
• Explained security risks and economic decisions made by households, and other unaccounted costs to families
• Explained stresses and conflicts in the community from women’s viewpoints
• Explained family and kinship ties in the community and overseas
• Reported news and stories such as births, new arrivals, school problems, crime, etc
• Identified former and current Montagnard health professionals in the US community
Promising outcomes at an efficient rate
• Able to interpret and communicate effectively to a preliterate, multilingual population at 40% of the standard rate ($20 per hour compared to $50 per hour)
• Frees scarce, highly qualified translators and interpreters to do more demanding work
• Saves American professionals time by making sure clients understand and follow basic instructions, arrive on time, bring essential documents, etc.
• Regular, inexpensive, low level intervention in the Montagnard community can assure ongoing research and improve health outcomes
