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Latino Unity Coalition - Por Nuestra Salud - Violence Prevention Program

Latino Unity Coalition

The Latino Unity Coalition program is working to develop a multi-intervention capacity-building process. the program focuses on the design of culturally sound models of HIV prevention , outreach and intervention in the counties and cities most populated by the State of Illinois.

Program Description

The SLLH, in partnership with the Coalition of Latin American Ministries, the Illinois County Health Departments, and City Health Departments, is implementing the Latino Unity Coalition. This project will develop a multi-intervention capacity-building process. The project is directed to professionals and faith based providers, enabling the acquisition of culturally competent skills, and focusing on the design of culturally sound models of HIV prevention, outreach and intervention in the counties and cities most populated by Latinos in the State of Illinois. The project will include the counties: Cook (1,069,972), Kane (95,776), DuPage (81,375), Lake (92,143), Will (43,697), Winnebago (19,211), McHenry (19,506), and McLean (19,506). A long distance learning component will be available through a website with the purpose of reaching clinical and religious providers throughout these counties.

Goals

The Latino Unity Coalition's primary goal is to improve the accessibility and utilization of HIV prevention, outreach and treatment strategies by a wide range of at-risk Latino population. Secondary goals are: (1) provide acquisition of culturally competent skills to assess and provide a continuum of physical and spiritual services in the prevention and care of HIV/AIDS, and (2) establish long distance learning capabilities that will focus on Latino methodologies and information to supply providers with technical assistance.

Specific Objectives

  1. Develop a partnership among professional and faith based providers to offer a continuum of care to at-risk and HIV infected Latinos
  2. Train professional and religious personnel in culturally sound primary and secondary prevention interventions
  3. Implement a website with specialized training and informational tools that will improve providers' efficacy in outreach and practicing health promotion with Latinos
  4. Design an HIV prevention model for Latinos
  5. Influence the data collection process about HIV infected Latinos and the patterns leading into new exposure

Partner Agencies

The initiative will be developed and implemented in partnership with the Coalition of Latin American Ministries, County and City Departments of Health, and Community Based Organizations where problems of HIV/AIDS among Latinos are prevalent.

funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health

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Por Nuestra Salud

the Por Nuestra Salud program is working to develop an HIV prevention program targeting high-risk Latino Immigrants and recent immigrants who reside in rural and non-urban areas of Illinois.

Program Description

The SL/LH, in partnership with Community Health Partnership of Illinois (CHP), is developing an HIV prevention program funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) targeting high-risk Latino migrants and recent immigrants who reside in rural and suburban areas of Illinois. The focus of activity in the first year will be Kane County.

Goals

The overall goal of this project is to increase the number and proportion of highrisk migrant and immigrant Latinos residing in non-metropolitan areas who:
• Adopt effective HIV risk reduction and prevention behaviors
• Know their HIV sero-status and,
• For those who test positive for HIV be successfully integrated into HIV care
services including case management, treatment and supportive services.

General Information

This project is grounded in the principles of collaboration. SL/LH and CHP will contribute with their expertise to develop a culturally and linguistically competent model of HIV Prevention. The Popular Opinion Leader (POL) model will serve as a strategy to promote HIV prevention, early testing, and adherence to treatment.

The Popular Opinion Leader model is similar to the Promotores de Salud concept, in which community members disseminate health promotion messages to their communities to prevent the advance of a disease or risk-behavior. Our project will adapt, tailor, and translate curricular material utilizing the expert advice from programs that have successfully utilized this model. Upon adaptation, a testing phase with the integration of POLs or promotores will follow. By the end of the project, POLs/promotores will be able to disseminate information and train new leaders in how to prevent HIV in their communities.

Among one of the most important roles of the POL is to develop an informative and trusting relationship with their communities, giving advice about HIV counseling, testing and referral services. And therefore, migrant and immigrant Latinos will be encouraged to have timely HIV testing increase their likelihood of receiving treatment and protecting their partners from the infection.

In summary, Por Nuestra Salud will consist of the adaptation and integration of two interventions:
1. Popular Opinion Leader
2. HIV Counseling, Testing, and Referral

If you have any questions, please contact our Por Nuestra Salud Field Coordinator Perla Y. Sifuentes (630)892-6371  at our office located at 143 South Lincoln, Suite I, Aurora, IL 60505.


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Violence Prevention Program

The Violence Prevention Program is working with seventh grade students in the Pilsen community of Chicago to help them develop a strong & confident positive self identity. the program also focuses on helping the youth understand the importance of tolerance, respect and empathy with others.

The violence prevention program is designed to help young Latino youth develop a strong and confident positive self identity, understand the importance of tolerance, respect, assertiveness, self control, and develop a strong understanding of the negatives of gant life. The development of these traits are built up through group and peer trainings, role-playing, and group reasoning/discussion.

The program is designed to equip the participants with the skill of effective verbal/assertive communication with the intention of improving the lines of communication within the families of the participants. The improved communication is expected to result in non aggressive tones and dialogue between families. The improved communication will also help the participants and their families by being agle to better understand what each member of the family wants through expressing what they want in a clear manner.

The program not only aims at reducing the likelihood of domestic violence within the home, but also of influencing the program participants in such a way that would hopefully deter them from participating in acts of violence or abuse towards their friends and elders outside of the house. The program is designed to equip the participants with both anger management & self-control skills. These skills will be useful for the participants to not react violently, rather respond in a measured way when they feel frustrated or stressed out by one of their family members or peers.

Why we are working with the Pilsen Latino Youth Community?

According to statistics compiled by the University of Illinois, "Chicago Community Area Demographics"

  1. Immense Latino population in Pilsen of over 40,000
  2. Principal of Ozorco Elementary CPS has documented the need to start violence prevention programs among his students' & their families.
  3. Seventh graders seem to be at an age of transition with considerable
    aggression and turmoil
  4. A significant percentage of students in the Pilsen neighborhood are living in a violent household or have experienced abusive behavior towards them

We want to help develop the following skills & traits in the participants of our group:

1. We want to develop ethnic pride by:

  • Exploring how we define our own identity
  • Highlighting the strengths of our cultural values
  • Identifying positive role models of our own culture
  • Sharing family stories about coming to the USA

2. We want to develop respect & tolerance by:

  • Learning the concept that we as individual should be able to accept things, without necessarily having to agree with them
  • Naming specific ways in which we are similar and different & how individual perception determines whether a characteristic is seen as a difference or a commonality
  • Discussing how commonalities are vital to achieving understanding and harmony

3. We want to develop awareness of adolescent natural development by:

  • Discussing how youth physically change and develop during puberty
  • Discussing the importance of taking care of yourself
  • Discussing the development of character by being an individual by making your own choices
  • Discussing the effect of alcohol and drugs on an adolescents developing brain

4. We want to develop knowledge of false male stereotypes and roles by:

  • Discussing the origin of many stereotypes
  • Comparing and contrasting general stereotypes to specific examples of individuals
  • Defining what roles are and how they affect how youth believe they should act

5. We want to develop the skill to deal with peer pressure by:

  • Sharing our own experiences with peer pressure
  • Illustrating the importance of being able to say "no"
  • Discussing and presenting effective methods of managing peer pressure

6. We want to develop self confidence by:

  • Discussing and breaking down what self confidence mean
  • Exploring the connection between self confidence and self control
  • Identifying key reasons many youth feel compelled to demonstrate their machismo/masculinity to others rather than just being self confident about themselves

7. We want to develop anger management skills by:

  • Identifying the difference between a preventer and a provoker in aggressive situations
  • Evaluating how we as individuals deal with our own anger
  • Learning proven techniques and strategies "to keep our anger at bay"
  • Learning how to respond assertively rather than reacting hastily/inappropriately

8. We want to develop assertive communication skills by:

  • Defining what assertive communication is
  • Learn techniques to communicate effectively without giving the impression of being hostile
  • Learning proper steps to having successful assertive communication
  • Identifying the pros of being assertive
  • Learning the difference between passive, assertive, and aggressive behaviors

9. We want to develop a clear understanding about gang life/gang involvement by:

  • Identifying the effect the media has on our perception concerning gangs
  • Having former gang members share their personal experiences with the program
  • Discuss how gang involvement may affect our individual lives in the long run
  • Identifying the pros and cons of being involved in a gang
  • Sharing our personal goals for the future and examining where, if anywhere, gangs come in

By the end of the groups final session, our work will produce results by:

  1. Diminishing the likelihood of intra-familiar conflicts
  2. Improve ability to problem solve
  3. Improve ability to control anger & aggression
  4. Improve coping skills in terms of stress & frustration
  5. Understand better the relationship with the opposite gender
  6. Improve ability to communicate feelings in an assertive manner
  7. Reduce the risk of gang involvement

The Success of the program will be measured not only by the evaluation of the program by both the parents and the students, but also by comparing the record of each student in terms of how many times they got in trouble the previous year to their record of this concluding school year. We hope to see a decline in the amount of instances that the students were reprimanded for misbehavior on an average.

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Salud Latina - 53 West Jackson Boulevard Suite 1257 - Chicago, Illinois 60604 - (312) 913-3001