title: Design, methods, and baseline characteristics of the Kids' Health Insurance by Educating Lots of Parents (Kids' HELP) trial: a randomized, controlled trial of the effectiveness of parent mentors in insuring uninsured minority children.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Six million US children have no health insurance, and substantial racial/ethnic disparities exist. The design, methods, and baseline characteristics are described for Kids' Health Insurance by Educating Lots of Parents (Kids' HELP), the first randomized, clinical trial of the effectiveness of Parent Mentors (PMs) in insuring uninsured minority children.
  Latino and African-American children eligible for but not enrolled in Medicaid/CHIP were randomized to PMs, or a control group receiving traditional Medicaid/CHIP outreach. PMs are experienced parents with ≥1 Medicaid/CHIP-covered children. PMs received two days of training, and provide intervention families with information on Medicaid/CHIP eligibility, assistance with application submission, and help maintaining coverage. Primary outcomes include obtaining health insurance, time interval to obtain coverage, and parental satisfaction. A blinded assessor contacts subjects monthly for one year to monitor outcomes.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of 49,361 candidates screened, 329 fulfilled eligibility criteria and were randomized. The mean age is seven years for children and 32 years for caregivers; 2/3 are Latino, 1/3 are African-American, and the mean annual family income is $21,857. Half of caregivers were unaware that their uninsured child is Medicaid/CHIP eligible, and 95% of uninsured children had prior insurance. Fifteen PMs completed two-day training sessions. All PMs are female and minority, 60% are unemployed, and the mean annual family income is $20,913. Post-PM-training, overall knowledge/skills test scores significantly increased, and 100% reported being very satisfied/satisfied with the training.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Kids' HELP successfully reached target populations, met participant enrollment goals, and recruited and trained PMs.
authors.affiliation: Division of General Pediatrics, Department of Pediatrics, UT Southwestern Medical Center, 5323 Harry Hines Blvd, Dallas, TX 75390-9063, USA; Division of General Pediatrics, Children's Medical Center Dallas, 1935 Medical District Dr, Dallas, TX 75235, USA. Electronic address: glenn.flores@utsouthwestern.edu.
authors.forename: Glenn
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Flores
authors.affiliation: Division of General Pediatrics, Department of Pediatrics, UT Southwestern Medical Center, 5323 Harry Hines Blvd, Dallas, TX 75390-9063, USA.
authors.forename: Candy
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Walker
authors.affiliation: Division of General Pediatrics, Department of Pediatrics, UT Southwestern Medical Center, 5323 Harry Hines Blvd, Dallas, TX 75390-9063, USA.
authors.forename: Hua
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.affiliation: Division of General Pediatrics, Department of Pediatrics, UT Southwestern Medical Center, 5323 Harry Hines Blvd, Dallas, TX 75390-9063, USA; Division of General Pediatrics, Children's Medical Center Dallas, 1935 Medical District Dr, Dallas, TX 75235, USA.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Division of General Pediatrics, Department of Pediatrics, UT Southwestern Medical Center, 5323 Harry Hines Blvd, Dallas, TX 75390-9063, USA.
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fierro
authors.affiliation: Division of General Pediatrics, Department of Pediatrics, UT Southwestern Medical Center, 5323 Harry Hines Blvd, Dallas, TX 75390-9063, USA.
authors.forename: Monica
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Henry
authors.affiliation: Division of General Pediatrics, Department of Pediatrics, UT Southwestern Medical Center, 5323 Harry Hines Blvd, Dallas, TX 75390-9063, USA.
authors.forename: Kenneth
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Massey
authors.affiliation: Division of General Pediatrics, Department of Pediatrics, UT Southwestern Medical Center, 5323 Harry Hines Blvd, Dallas, TX 75390-9063, USA.
authors.forename: Alberto
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Portillo
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003144:Communication Barriers; D003365:Costs and Cost Analysis; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000191:economics; D006630:Hispanic or Latino; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008484:Medicaid / Q000458:organization & administration; D008483:Medical Assistance / Q000191:economics / Q000458:organization & administration*; D017057:Medically Uninsured; D008611:Mentors; D008875:Middle Aged; D010290:Parents; D011788:Quality of Life; D012107:Research Design; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013997:Time Factors; D014481:United States
keywords: Adolescent; African Americans; Child; Hispanic Americans; Medically uninsured; Public health