Deborah Chung
Pronouns: she/her
Research Mentor(s): Tsu-Yin Wu, Director and Professor
Research Mentor School/College/Department: Eastern Michigan University School of Nursing,
Presentation Date: Thursday, April 22, 2021
Session: Session 2 (11am – 11:50am)
Breakout Room: Room 10
Presenter: 4
Abstract
Breast and cervical cancer is one of the most common diseases among Asian American women; thus, it is extremely important for women to be vigilant about breast cancer prevention, by being well aware of the habits they must exercise such as regularly attending screenings and consulting healthcare providers. However, Asian American women are statistically less likely to receive mammograms and pap smears than non-Asian Americans. Bangladesh-American immigrant women specifically tend to have high breast cancer rates, as there is a lack of awareness for breast cancer screenings and little motivation to pursue screenings and treatment in Bangladesh, and these patterns translate after immigration, causing Bangladesh-American women to continue to have these mentalities. Additionally, due to a lack of English proficiency, Bangladesh American women are less susceptible to adapting to new mentalities and more fearful of taking action. The purpose of this project is to better understand the practices of breast and cervical cancer screenings in Bangladesh American women in the Detroit metropolitan area, and the role that bilingual community health workers play in facilitating Bangladesh Americans in the enrollment of the Michigan Breast and Cervical Cancer Control Navigation Program (BC3NP). Thus, the research questions that guided this study were split into 2 main questions: 1) What are the roles that bilingual community health workers in metro-Detroit have in facilitating Bangladesh American women’s enrollment into the Michigan BCCCNP? And 2) What are the major barriers related to receiving breast and cervical cancer screening for Bangladesh American women in the metro-Detroit area? The methods used in this study is the analysis of a tracking sheet of the patients’ age, insurance status, hospital location, first contact and follow-up date, screening date and location, specified barriers, and case status. The results and conclusion of the survey are yet to be reviewed and determined. With the results of this study, we can identify the specific barriers that prevent Bangladesh American women from receiving proper breast and cervical prevention resources, and address the specific needs to be met in order to eliminate these barriers. We can also acknowledge the extent of the necessity for more bilingual community health workers in the process of interacting with immigrant-women communities for healthcare purposes.
Authors: Deborah Chung, Tsu-Yin Wu
Research Method: Community Based Research
