TECHNOLOGY & COMMUNITY-BASED APPROACHES TO IMPROVE HEALTH IN HARLEM

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The Harlem Health Promotion Center's (HHPC) mission is to serve as a collaboration of community, academic and public health stakeholders that uses research, education, advocacy and service delivery to improve the health and well-being of the Harlem community. As an innovative and inclusive non-profit public health organization serving Harlem, the overarching goal of HHPC is to make use of community partnerships, communication and dissemination, training, evaluation, information technology, and infrastructure to improve the health and well-being of Harlem residents in regard to a broad spectrum of health issues. This goal is accomplished through the use of a socio-ecological model that incorporates community-based research, health education, and health service delivery in response to the evolving needs of the community. To further accomplish this goal, dynamic community and academic collaborations allow HHPC to connect local Harlem resources with the broader public health community in order to promote health and strengthen partnerships within Harlem and with public health stakeholders throughout New York. Through its community-based research in the ensuing Core Research Project, HHPC will focus on reducing cardiovascular disease (CVD) through improved control of hypertension (HTN) via an innovative integrated approach. Furthermore, through its health education/outreach and health service delivery arms, HHPC will address health priorities and disparities affecting adolescents, in particular the high rate of sexually transmitted infections, HIV and unplanned pregnancy. RELEVANCE (See instructions): Nationally, African Americans and Hispanics suffer disproportionately from HTN. While 28% of all Americans have high blood pressure, 29% of Hispanics and 40% of African Americans are affected. Similarly, among adolescents, youth of color bear a disproportionate burden of sexually transmitted infections and HIV. Using community based participatory research, HHPC strives to address these health disparities in Harlem, NYC.