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Un Abrazo Para La Familia: An Evidenced-Based Rehabilitation Approach in Providing Cancer Education to Low-SES Hispanic Co-Survivors

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Abstract

We discuss Un Abrazo Para La Familia as an effective, rehabilitation-informed evidence-based model of education, information-sharing, and skill teaching for use with low-income Hispanic co-survivors of cancer. Over 2 years, 120 co-survivors participated in the intervention. The majority of participants (96 %) were women and all but one reported being Hispanic. Both in years 1 and 2, we followed the same pre- and post-intervention evaluation design. Based on pre- and post-intervention assessments of cancer-related knowledge and self-efficacy, the percentage of questions answered correctly about cancer significantly increased for co-survivors. Self-efficacy significantly increased as well. Using item analysis, we explored skill teaching as a mechanism for the effective delivery of Un Abrazo and recommend the use of promotoras in providing the intervention. Of the 12 cancer knowledge items resulting in statistically significant increases of cancer knowledge, 5 were taught via interactive skill teaching. Given the projected rise in the incidence of cancer in Hispanic populations, coupled with the fact that people from low-income backgrounds face unique challenges in cancer prevention and management, implications of the Un Abrazo model for future research and policy regarding cancer and families are considered.

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Acknowledgments

Research leading to the development of the program described here was supported by a Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award for Individual Senior Fellowship (Grant Number F33CA117704), the Department of Health and Human Services National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Cancer Institute or the National Institutes of Health. We are grateful to the Southern Arizona Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure® for funding the program as described here. The program funding was awarded to the El Rio Health Center Foundation. We thank El Rio promotora Lorena Verdugo for her assistance in carrying out the program, as well as the program participants for their contributions to our program evaluation data. We thank Kelsey Whittier for her assistance with the data entry and Dr. Mark Borgstrom for his assistance with our statistical analyses.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Disability and Psychoeducational Studies, University of Arizona, P.O. Box 210477, Tucson, AZ, 85721-0477, USA

    Catherine A. Marshall

  2. Family Studies and Human Development, University of Arizona, 650 N. Park McClelland Park, Tucson, AZ, 85721-0078, USA

    Melissa A. Curran

  3. Department of Human and Community Development, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 226 Bevier Hall, M/C 180, Urbana, IL, 61801, USA

    Susan Silverberg Koerner

  4. Social Dimensions of Health Institute (SDHI), Universities of Dundee and St Andrews, 11 Airlie Place Dundee, DD1 4HJ, Dundee, Scotland UK

    Thilo Kroll

  5. Department of English, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, 85721, USA

    Amy C. Hickman

  6. Pima County Health Department, 3950 S. Country Club, Suite 100, Tucson, AZ, 85714, USA

    Francisco García

Authors
  1. Catherine A. Marshall
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  2. Melissa A. Curran
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  3. Susan Silverberg Koerner
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  4. Thilo Kroll
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  5. Amy C. Hickman
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  6. Francisco García
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Catherine A. Marshall.

Additional information

An earlier version of this paper was presented at the 2012 International Cancer Education Conference, From Theory to Practice: Making a Difference through Cancer Education.

Appendix

Appendix

Role Play for Un Abrazo Session 2

“Alopecia and In Situ”

Mother: Hi Doctor, I want to know why my daughter's hair is falling in chunks?

Doctor: The falling of the hair is called Alopecia, this happens due to the chemotherapy and radiation. Her hair will grow back once she ends the treatment. This often begins within 2 weeks of the start of the treatment and gets worse 1 to 2 months after starting therapy.

Daughter: Is it okay to wear a wig or a scarf?

Doctor: Yes, it is. You will need to wear something to protect your scalp from the heat or the cold. Your scalp may be sensitive so be gentle when brushing or washing your hair.

Mother: I would also like to know what the term in situ means. Can you explain this to us?

Doctor: The term in situ means that the cancer found was non-invasive. In other words this is a type of cancer that has not yet spread outside of the duct to other tissues in the breast.

Mother and Daughter: Thank you doctor for your help and explaining the different terms to us.

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Marshall, C.A., Curran, M.A., Koerner, S.S. et al. Un Abrazo Para La Familia: An Evidenced-Based Rehabilitation Approach in Providing Cancer Education to Low-SES Hispanic Co-Survivors. J Canc Educ 29, 626–633 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13187-013-0593-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13187-013-0593-7

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