Health Education Intervention in the Cultural Context

In actuality, the problem of the spread of breast cancer in the African American community is a serious threat to the female population of the community, because breast cancer affects their life and health. In such a situation, the problem of health education intervention in the African American community becomes particularly important because the prevention of the disease starts from the early diagnosing and regular examinations, which allow to identify first signs of the development of the disease as well as to identify the risk group, which may face the threat of the development of the disease. At this point, health care professionals should focus on three levels of the health education intervention to reach the target audience, African American women, to make them aware of the risk of breast cancer, including individual, family, and neighborhood/community level.

Obviously, health education intervention is essential to prevent the spread of the disease in the African American community because the level of education in African American community is lower compared to the white community, whereas the risk of the development of breast cancer in African American females is still high. In this respect, health care professionals should pay a particular attention to the individual level of health education intervention. To put it more precisely, health care professionals should be able to reach the target audience directly and inform individuals at risk of the existing problem as well as provide the target population with recommendations concerning preventive measures. At this point, it is possible to recommend increasing women’s awareness of possible health problems related to the development of breast cancer through provision them with detailed information about the disease, its symptoms and development as well as possible methods of treatment. The direct face-to-face work of health care professionals with women during pregnancy may contribute to the growing awareness of the risk of the development of breast cancer. In such a way, health care professionals can reach their target population and persuade African American women to conduct regular examinations to minimize the risk of the development of breast cancer.

At the same time, health care professionals should also pay attention to the impact of the family on the behavior of their patients and they should involve families in the health education intervention. In this respect, it is possible to recommend training programs for parents to raise individual awareness of the risk of the development of breast cancer in girls since the early childhood.

In addition, the involvement of spouses in the promotion of necessity of regular examinations of women can contribute to the improvement of the early diagnosing and prevention of the disease. In fact, spouses should help African American women to conduct regular examinations. They should be supportive and help African American women to go to a hospital for examination on the regular basis to prevent the development of breast cancer.

Finally, the neighborhood/community also plays an important part in health education intervention to prevent the spread of breast cancer in the African American community. In this regard, it is possible to focus on the creation of educational programs for African American women as well as other women in the community concerning breast cancer, its symptoms, development and treatment. At this point, the involvement of public schools and educators to deliver educational programs may be helpful because African American girls will learn from the childhood about risks they may face in their adulthood. In such a way, the health education intervention can stop the spread of the breast cancer in the community.

In addition, the health education intervention may include the spread of leaflets within the community targeting at the female audience. The leaflets should be spread within the community to help African American women and their families to become aware of the risk of the development of breast cancer and recommendations concerning their behavior to prevent the development of the disease.

Finally, promotional campaign should be conducted in local media, including visual media, such as TV, internet, and print media, which reach the mass audience. The promotional campaigns through available media can be very helpful because they allow to reach the large audience and to provide African American women with detailed information on breast cancer, its symptoms, treatment and prevention. In such a way, the health education intervention can reach the target audience.
Thus, it proves beyond a doubt that the health education intervention concerning the prevention of breast cancer in the African American community should involve three levels: individual, family and community.

REFERENCES
Davis, K., et al. (2006). “Mirror, Mirror on the Wall: An Update on the Quality of American Health Care through the Patient’s Lens.” The Commonwealth Fund.
Gadgil, M., Berkes, F., & Folke, C. (1993). Indigenous knowledge for biodiversity conservation. Ambio, 22, 151”“156.
Mazzocchi, F. (2006). “Western science and traditional knowledge: Despite their variations, different forms of knowledge can learn from each other.” EMBO Reports, 7(5), 463-6.



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