Luvenia Cowart, in collaboration with Maria Brown, has received a grant from the New York State Department of Health for a project entitled “African American Dementia Caregivers Support Program” which will provide five years of support to the Genesis Health Program.
The Genesis Health Program (GHP) network is a University-Community collaboration to teach and encourage community members to develop and maintain positive health behaviors, attitudes, values and practices. The network’s main goal is to reduce health disparities in minority populations by collaborating with community organizations to identify and address health needs in greater Syracuse and Central New York. The GHP model infrastructure includes ten inner-city churches, a Pastor’s Health Council, and lay health advocate volunteers from the congregations. Previous topics include obesity, diabetes prevention and management, and prostate, colorectal, and breast cancers.
The goals of the African American Dementia Caregivers Support program (AADCS) include: 1) increase knowledge about Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias among inner-city African Americans, 2) increase the use of available services and supports by inner-city African American caregivers, 3) reduce caregiver stress in inner-city African American caregivers. Community partners include the Central New York Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association, the Onondaga County Office for the Aging, and Cornell Cooperative Extension.
The AADCS will closely follow the existing GHP model, which includes a pastor’ educational seminar, cultural competency training for community-based partners, a 12-week healthy living program, and church-based seminars. We will additionally offer a lay health advocate’s (LHAs) training and a monthly caregiver’s support and education group, and funding for at-home respite care to enable informal dementia caregivers to attend selected events. Alzheimer’s Association staff will provide education about dementia and dementia caregiving at the pastor’s seminar, 12-week healthy living sessions, church-based surveys, and the LHA training, and will be present at educational events to conduct formal intake interviews and to provide information and referral services to attendees. Other community partners will participate in different events to provide information about formal resources, to educate attendees about self-care, or to lead stress management activities and exercise groups.