Identify an example of a health communication intervention that has addressed the
needs of vulnerable or underserved groups in your community. What has been the
impact of this intervention among these groups? What suggestions would you make for
improvement?
Health Communication Intervention in underserved Communities
Health Communication intervention measures have been used to reach the
underserved and marginalized communities in a bid to improve healthcare. They have been
pivotal in influencing behavior change, information dissemination, location of healthcare
facilities, and health promotion among the individuals living in marginalized communities
(Schiavo, 2015) . Moreover, they aid in ensuring that the affected persons are well informed
on homecare procedures to prevent recurrence of conditions and self-management, thus
minimizing the need to visit a healthcare facility. Furthermore, they augment the services
provided by community nurses, healthcare, and social workers through the dissemination of
information to at-risk and affected individuals, thereby influencing behavior change.
Various programs have incorporated health communication intervention to aid in the
reduction prevalence and incidence rates and the spread of disease and conditions in
underserved communities (Kreuter, McQueen, Boyum, & Fu, 2016) . The goal is to have an
effect on the cost, reduce provider time and engagement, and increased awareness among the
community members by embracing public health intervention measures contained in health
communication. An example of such measures is the Columbia University Informatics for
Diabetes Education and Telemedicine (IDEATel) Project which was established to reach the
vulnerable communities and provide information regarding diabetes, prevention, self-care,
and management (Kim, Cho, & Yoon, 2015) . Moreover, it includes health promotion
HEALTH COMMUNICATION INTERVENTION 2
activities such as eating a balanced diet, role of physical exercise in prevention and
management, and the need to adhere to the medication.
As such, there has been a reduction in the number of hospital visits, hospitalizations,
and complications from diabetes. Additionally, the mortality rate from the condition has also
reduced over the years. Public awareness on Diabetes has also been enhanced through the
project leading to behavior change among individuals of the community and therefore,
prevention of the disease (Kim, Cho, & Yoon, 2015) . Moreover, the financial burden of the
disease has reduced through the reduction of the number of hospital visits and hospitalization
of the patients. The primary improvement strategy, however, would be an expansion of the
project by embracing recent technological advancements and internet use among the
vulnerable communities to increase the reach of the program.
HEALTH COMMUNICATION INTERVENTION 3
References
Kim, H.-S., Cho, J.-H., & Yoon, K.-H. (2015). New Directions in Chronic Disease
Management. Endocrinology and Metabolism, 30(2), 159-166.
doi:10.3803/EnM.2015.30.2.159
Kreuter, M. W., McQueen, A., Boyum, S., & Fu, Q. (2016). Unmet basic needs and health
intervention effectiveness in low-income populations. Preventative Medicine, 91, 70-
Schiavo, R. (2015). Addressing health disparities in clinical settings: Population health,
quality of care, and communication. Journal of Communication in Healthcare, 8(3),
163-166.