A
diverse new alliance has formed in June 2005
to bring attention to the importance of
cardiovascular (CV) health among
African-Americans. The Living Heart
Foundation, National Football League Players
Association, Howard Medical School and
Morehouse School of Medicine have come
together with shared resources to provide
outreach programs involving cardiovascular
health education and interventional
services/studies. The initial program
kick-off, projected for the Fall season of
2005, will launch in key needy areas with
proposed underwriting from pharmaceutical
companies and other commercial sponsors as
well as state/government sources.
Living
Healthy Partners (LHP) will target
African-Americans and health issues at the
community level with an initial focus on two
national healthcare problems; childhood
obesity and minority CV health disparity.
With administrative support from the Living
Heart Foundation (LHF) this initiative will
engage regional hospital partners, public
schools and churches. Leaders within these
organizations will unite forming unique
relationships between school principals,
church pastors and NFL players participating
in the program through the National Football
League Players Association.
Key
roles of alliance members include:
-
Living
Heart Foundation to coordinate program
selection and execution plan while
providing quality controlled health
screenings at the community level.
-
The National Football League Players
Association to motivate the public and
provide exercise program skills to
community program participants.
-
Howard
Medical School and Morehouse School of
Medicine to provide community study
protocol, database structure and
scientific integrity.
Upon
identifying a regional hospital partner, a
kick-off weekend of CV health education and
screening will occur in the chosen
African-American community. This initial
phase will be followed by a program
development organization phase where the
specific objectives of the regional partners
will be integrated into the finalized
outreach protocols. Finally, the outreach
program is expected to extend for six months
to one year. The program content will
involve lifestyle choices including
nutrition, exercise and medical guidance.
Careful
evaluation of the effectiveness of the
regional program will involve comprehensive
analysis and reporting of de-identified
group data. Individual health data remains
confidential, in accordance with national
HIPPA regulations.
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