Using Multilevel, Multisource Needs Assessment Data for Planning Community Interventions

Abstract

African Americans and Latinos share higher rates of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and diabetes compared with Whites. These diseases have common risk factors that are amenable to primary and secondary prevention. The goal of the Chicago REACH 2010–Lawndale Health Promotion Project is to eliminate disparities related to CVD and diabetes experienced by African Americans and Latinos in two contiguous Chicago neighborhoods using a community-based prevention approach. This article shares findings from the Phase 1 participatory planning process and discusses the implications these findings and lessons learned may have for programs aiming to reduce health disparities in multiethnic communities. The triangulation of data sources from the planning phase enriched interpretation and led to more creative and feasible suggestions for programmatic interventions across the four levels of the ecological framework. Multisource data yielded useful information for program planning and a better understanding of the cultural differences and similarities between African Americans and Latinos.