A Community-based Palliative Care Model for Latinos with Advanced Cancer
Grant
Overview
abstract
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Conventional palliative care models have failed Latinos with cancer;only 2% are referred to palliative care. The severe shortage of palliative care providers in eastern NC is compounded for Latinos by rurality, economic disadvantage, discrimination, language differences, and lack of access. Rural-dwelling Latinos with advanced cancer (AC) have no known theory-based, culturally-relevant, community palliative care program. Thus, our interdisciplinary team and community partners propose a novel palliative care intervention: Latino Palliative Care Lay Advisors (PCLA). Our proposal extend previous pilot work with local Latino palliative care advocates who described conversations about advance care planning as "planting seeds." To develop and test our PCLA intervention for Latinos with AC and their caregiver, we will use both the Ethnocultural Gerontological Nursing Model and an action-oriented, mixed method design. From three rural counties in eastern NC, we will recruit both a purposive sample of 15 Latino natural leaders and a convenience sample of 75-90 Latinos with AC and their caregiver. Each PCLA will be partnered with a designated team nurse during training and delivery of the intervention to ensure fidelity with palliative care best practices. Team members are well-positioned to carry out this project due to their broad experience with Latinos in the US, Mexico, and Central America: They are bilingual, engender trust, and advocate for human rights. Through education and outreach, this project brings together members of the community and the health care system to deliver the highest quality care and optimize QOL for a vulnerable population.
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