Hinojosa on Minority Health

In looking at avenues to support minority health initiatives, particularly in the Hispanic community, it is essential to develop relationships with trusted leaders within the community. Organizations, religious institutions, local businesses, and community health centers are where advocates with real community touch points can be found. These leaders will be central to sharing safe, reliable information with their friends, neighbors and clients. They already have the trust and confidence of the community and utilizing those relationships will be vital to spreading health and wellness information that will benefit their friends and families. Once those community connections have been identified and established, it will be crucial to have culturally and linguistically appropriate resources. For the Hispanic community, that means having literature translated in a culturally sensitive way.  The Spanish-speaking community is quite diverse linguistically and this needs to be accounted for in any translation. What might be a colloquialism for one segment of the population may be offensive to another. Something as simple as translating the word beans as habichuelas rather than frijoles could be enough to turn away a reader, depending on their country of origin. Including your community leaders in the process, as health initiatives are being formed, rather than simply as a means to transmit health information, will help ensure that information is being tailored to the constituents th...
Source: PHRMA - Category: Pharmaceuticals Authors: Source Type: news