Building Partnerships in Diverse Communities: Promising Practices from Massachusetts

1. Building Partnerships in Diverse Communities: Promising Practices from Massachusetts

2. Massachusetts Overview • 2000 Census Data • 6.8% Hispanic or Latino • 5.4% Black or African American • 3.8% Asian • Portuguese speakers are second largest linguistic group comprising 800,000-1 million people (www.maps-inc.org)

3. Maude HurdThe Medical FoundationBoston Area Tobacco Control Coalition

4. What is BATCC? • We focus on: • Youth Access • Tobacco Education • Secondhand Smoke • Health Disparities • Serve 6 Communities: Boston, Cambridge, Chelsea, Revere, Somerville, Winthrop • Funded by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health/CDC

5. Our Goals • Build diverse partnerships within the community • Create a diverse network of people to support our work

6. The Big Questions • How do we get people interested in our issue? • How do we get people to the table?

7. Getting People Interested • Thought out who in the community we should partner with (what made sense) • Made it relevant to their work (because it is) • Found ways to tie our issue into theirs • Ex: Tobacco closely relates to: • Asthma • Cardiovascular disease • Environmental Health

8. Our Strategy • Assessed & knew our community & resources • Found diverse groups & individuals interested in and working on issues closely tied to tobacco • Asthma coalitions, environmental groups, cardiovascular programs • Health centers, treatment programs, physicians • Schools, faith-based organizations, GLBT programs • Community-based & youth organizations • Culture-specific community, health, & youth organizations

9. Our Strategy (cont.) • Contacted Potential Partners • Created a introductory letter and partner form which included: • Information about BATCC & services • Their Contact information • Organization description • Services BATCC provides • Options for their participation • Offered involvement on various levels • Low, Medium, High *Clearly verbalized & gave concrete examples of how tobacco related to their issue and ways they could be involved*

10. Our Strategy (cont.) • Mailed/Emailed letter and form to Partners identified • Including BUAC (Boston Urban Asthma Coalition) database • Tracked responses using database • Followed up with phone calls, personal visits, emails 53 partners signed on in four months!

11. Getting Partners to the Table • Held an initial meeting • Made it easy for everyone to be involved • Everyone committed to a goal or strategy • Everyone had a role in BATCC

12. Maintain Contact • Found out what worked best for them, at meeting • Regular email updates • Workgroups/Email groups around our 4 goals • Quarterly meetings

13. The Real Success… Creating and maintaining meaningful working relationships to affect real change

14. Jeffrey DingerBarnstable County Sheriff’s DepartmentTobacco Education Coalition of Greater Cape Cod and the Islands

15. Provincetown Demographics • 3,500 year-round residents • 50,000 summer residents • 25% Portuguese ancestry • 20% GLBT

16. Successful Partnerships Mean: • Sharing resources • Collaborating on events • Information & resources reaching a more diverse audience • Treatment information & resources reaching more smokers • Partners co-writing/writing articles & getting them printed (in their newsletters, through their media contacts)

17. Diverse/Welcoming Community Message on Chamber of Commerce Website Provincetown is a very special place – special in many different ways for many different people. It’s the most diversely populated small town fishing village in the world! And that includes our visitors; Couples, Singles, Families, Short, Tall, Skinny, Fat, Gay, Straight, Young, Old… you get the picture!Provincetown welcomes all!

18. Tobacco Control Milestones • 1989 total ban on cigarette vending machines • 1998 restaurant, bar and youth access regulations • 2002 100% smokefree restaurants and bars

19. Need for Cessation Resources • Impact of regulations on demand • Enhanced needs of P’town residents • Historic availability • Restructuring of treatment programs in 2000 • Solving the problem through partnership

20. Highlights from Statement of Need • Residents of the outermost town of Cape Cod have long been under-served with respect to access to smoking cessation services. • 41.5% of gay adults are smokers (Stall, et al, 1999) • 55% of GLBT youth smoked during previous 30 days and 36% reported being daily smokers (YRBS, 1999) • It is understood that individuals with compromised immune systems may be at greater risk for illness caused by tobacco use and/or ETS exposure.

21. Partners • American Cancer Society • Provincetown AIDS Support Group • Helping Our Women - Provincetown • Provincetown Board of Health • WOMR Radio • Provincetown Banner • Lower and Outer Cape Health Services • Lower/Outer Cape Community Coalition • Town of Provincetown • Barnstable County Health Department • Cape Cod Human Services • Cape Cod Regional Tobacco Control Program • Massachusetts Tobacco Control Program

22. Primary points • It’s about the partnerships! • Identify community needs in conjunction with the community.

23. Resources for GLBT community • www.gaysmokeout.net • www.bitchtoquit.com • www.lccp.org • www.trytostop.org • www.metrokc.gov/health/glbt/pubmed.htm

24. James WhiteSpanish American Union, Inc.Hampden County Tobacco Free Coalition

25. Who is the HCTFC? • The Hampden County Tobacco Free Coalition is a consortium of health and human service activists that are dedicated to protect the public from exposure to secondhand smoke; assist those who want to quit smoking; and to promote a smoke-free environment for the residents, visitors and people, who work in Springfield, MA Standard Metropolitan Area.

26. Area Demographics • 20.2 % Current Smokers -Target Group • Male 20.2% and Female 20.1% • White Non-Latino 20.5% and Latino 19.0% • African-American Non-Latino 21.9% • 27.3% are 18-24 years and 23.2% were 25-44 years • 19.1% are 45-64 years and 9.2% 65 plus • 26.6% High School Graduate • 29.7% Less than High School Degree • 16.1 % Some College and Above 2

27. Partnership developmentHow did we begin? • HCTFC included 7 boards of health, 3 youth programs, 4 tobacco treatment programs and 2 smoking intervention programs. • Members of each modality consisted of different racial, ethnic and gender origins. For example: youth advisors were males - African Americans and Latinos. • Six females served as treatment counselors and operated smoking intervention programs (3 Caucasians, 2 Latinos & an African American) • Health boards were white females. except for Springfield’s staff who were African American males. 4

28. Defining the Problem • In 2001, six-month regional survey conducted by members of our Coalition, reveals tobacco vendors were not the only source of tobacco products for underage smokers. • Who are the primary social sources? – young adults age 22 & under, who smoke • “social sources” –i.e. friends, relatives, and willing strangers aided youth smokers to get tobacco products.

29. Renewing Existing Relationships • While all programs attended our monthly meetings, the individual groups/modalities had not effectively collaborated on tobacco control activities except for conducting local compliance checks and local health fairs. • The boards of health and youth programs collaborated to conduct the initial social sources survey as part of our regional action plan in Western Massachusetts. It was a success! As a result, key data was garnered about social sources in our county. The members of our tobacco free coalition didn’t stop there.

30. How Did We Get Here? • Created a subcommittee consisting of youth programs and boards of health to plan and develop our community-based marketing initiative. • Focus groups with human service and community organizations that were frequented by 18-22 year-olds to help us to develop a strong message that would reach our target audience.

31. Focus Group Participants • AIC • Bay Path College • Holyoke Community College • STCC • Springfield College • Urban League of Springfield • Vietnamese American Civic Association

32. Recommendations • Big problems require team - individual can’t resolve alone • Collaboration with new + devise partners = revival • Accomplishments: held three diverse focus groups, developed strong message & input from target population. • Other achievements: “Don’t Get Her Started.” developed a Social Sources Marketing campaign. • Published newspaper ads and distributed more than 200 posters in English & Spanish. • Next: develop PSAs in multiple languages for Radio & TV

33. Elizabeth Connelly-SylviaCenter for Health and Human Services, Inc.Partners for Clean Air

34. Southcoast of Massachusetts, 60 miles from Boston, 30 miles west of Cape Cod Population of close to 100,000 50% of population does not have a high school diploma Third highest smoking rate in the state New Bedford

35. Portuguese in New Bedford • Largest ethnic group in city • High rate of smoking • 40% of Portuguese males smoke • Exposure to Second Hand Smoke often not viewed as a health issue • Close knit extended families • Family life focused on children • Portuguese women make household decisions

36. What did we hope to accomplish? • What have we accomplished thus far? • What is next?

37. How did we develop partnerships? • Built on pre-existing relationships • Networked extensively • Had already developed a “good name” with possible partners • Met potential partners where they were at providing them with a service they were in need of • Developed campaign together with initial partners from the beginning taking full advantage of each others expertise

38. How to keep partners engaged in promoting the project • Continue to build on existing relationships • Conduct brief trainings on the why’s and how to promote the Smoke Free Home Campaign • Provide accompanying manual • Provide ongoing technical support • Rewards for participation

39. COMMUNITY PARTNERS • Immigrant’s Assistance Center • Greater New Bedford Community Health Center • Center for Health and Human Services • New Bedford Rehabilitation Hospital • New Bedford Health Department • Schwartz Rehabilitation Center for Children • Quaker Fabrics

40. What did we hope to accomplish? • Build partnerships within the Portuguese community • Protect families especially children from second hand smoke • Raise awareness to the issue of second-hand smoke • Increase the number of smoke-free households • Provide information on quitting • Move smokers through the stages of change • Solidify partners as we move forward with regulatory action • Prepare the community for an increase in the level ETS regulations in the city

41. Did we do it? • Partnered with Portuguese service providers • Protect families especially children from second hand smoke • Raise awareness to the issue of environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) • Increase the number of smoke-free household • Provide information on quitting • Move smokers through the stages of change • Solidify partners as we move forward with regulatory action • Prepare the community for an increase in the level ETS regulations in the city

42. What have we accomplished thus far? • To date over 600 families have signed on to the campaign with over 200 Portuguese Speaking families • Campaign in produced in English, Spanish, and Portuguese • Over twenty community partners promoting the campaign

43. MATERIAL DEVELOPMENT

44. Certificado De Reconhecimento • Oferecido Por: • Centro de Assistência ao Imigrante • “ Por este meio prometo que vou manter a minha casa livre do fumo e que vou continuar a proteger os meus filhos, familiares e amigos dos riscos do fumo passivo.”

45. Promotional Opportunities • Radio - Portuguese Station • Cable Access TV – Portuguese Station • Cable Access Community Bulletin Boards in the Portuguese language • Newspaper Articles in Portuguese weekly paper • Posters in strategic locals in Portuguese • Transit Bus Service Advertising in Portuguese • T-shirts w/ logo only available in English • Monthly Raffle Prizes • Partnering with Portuguese Restaurants

46. Evaluation • Keep it simple • Data gathering • Data reporting

47. Data Gathering • Developed guide book to ensure uniformed method of recruitment • Developed pre and post evaluation

48. Data reporting • Numbers of participants registered each month • Number of organizations promoting the campaign • Specific language used by participants • Initial and follow up surveys (6 months)

49. WHAT’S NEXT? • Partner with additional businesses • Partner with private physician’s offices • Expand bus campaign • Expand poster campaign into Portuguese businesses • Expand into Fall River

50. Closing Points • Do your homework • Build Partnerships • Develop material • Utilize a multi-facetted approach • Do not over-extend your project • Evaluate results