Richmond Latino needs assessment: a community-university partnership to identify health concerns and service needs for Latino youth.
The presence of Latinos in Virginia is a new phenomenon and as a result, less is known about the health needs of these newest community members. We formed a community-university partnership to identify health concerns and service needs as they relate to Latino youth living in Richmond, Virginia and the surrounding area. Using a mixed-method approach, survey data was obtained from 212 Latino adults, qualitative interviews were conducted with 15 community leaders and focus groups with 23 Latino parents (16 mothers, 7 fathers) and 6 Latino boys. Participants expressed concern about sexually transmitted infections/pregnancy among youth (76%), youth behavior problems at home/school (75%), and mental health problems (75%). Participants also expressed worry that youth would lose their connection to their Latin culture (83%). Qualitative data provided more information regarding these concerns by linking them with inter-ethnic tensions, and immigration and acculturation-related stressors. Survey participants also indicated a need for bilingual mental health services (88%) and after-school programs for youth (94%). This study provided the local community with information on the health concerns and service needs of a new group of community youth-Latino youth. Findings were presented to local community and City organizations that used the information to respond to the identified needs and/or concerns. The process in which the data was obtained may prove useful to other individuals interested in obtaining local level health information in emerging communities.
Corona
Rosalie
R
Department of Psychology & Clark-Hill Institute for Positive Youth Development, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA 23284, USA. racorona@vcu.edu
Gonzalez
Tanya
T
Cohen
Robert
R
Edwards
Charlene
C
Edmonds
Torey
T
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D003159:Community-Institutional Relations; D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D005260:Female; D017144:Focus Groups; D006630:Hispanic or Latino; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D020380:Needs Assessment / Q000458:organization & administration*; D014495:Universities; D014505:Urban Population; D014768:Virginia; D055815:Young Adult