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Taking a community-based research approach

Community researcher Lena Hatchett, PhD
Lena Hatchett, PhD, has worked for more than a decade at reducing health disparities in minority and low-income areas in the United States and Africa.

Through her work in the Maywood, IL, area, Hatchett tries to connect health research to the communities it serves.

“Often, researchers go after a grant, then recruit participants to play a role,” says Hatchett, an assistant professor in the Stritch School of Medicine’s (Stritch) Department of Preventive Medicine and Neiswanger Institute for Bioethics and Health Policy. “I do community-based participatory research, which involves partnering with community residents and organizations at the beginning of a research idea to identify the problem, plan and design an approach, go after funding, and collect the data. Then, we use that data to build academic and learning potential while building community development around health.”

Gathering all stakeholders

One of Hatchett’s current research projects is the Maywood Health Initiative, a partnership of several area organizations. The team is completing an assessment of the health-care needs of the residents of Maywood, a low-income, predominantly minority area chosen because of its high levels of chronic illnesses such as heart disease, diabetes, asthma, and hypertension—diseases which disproportionately affect minorities. Once completed, the assessment will be used to design programs that promote healthy lifestyles among Maywood residents.

Health problems are often rooted in social, economic, cultural, and political factors.

“It’s so important to have the community’s input from the onset. Health problems are often rooted in social, economic, cultural, and political factors, so to be effective we have to work with all stakeholders,” says Hatchett, who has been a member of the Maywood Health Initiative since its inception two years ago.

Initiative partners include the Cook County Department of Public Health’s Health Promotion Unit, the University of Illinois Extension-Cook County/North Suburban Unit, area churches, community residents, and a variety of neighborhood groups and social organizations in Maywood.

Making soul food healthy

The Maywood Health Initiative is only the latest of Hatchett’s efforts to improve the quality of living of Maywood residents. She’s also involved in Soul Food Wednesday, a partnership involving health-care experts and medical students from Stritch, members of the community, and the United Faith Missionary Baptist Church in Maywood. The event is a monthly series of free lifestyle workshops for parents and children to promote wellness through inspiration and information.

The Maywood community lacks a major grocery store and restaurants that feature healthy food choices. To help circumvent these obstacles to good nutrition, Hatchett’s group teaches area residents to modify traditional recipes to make them healthier while maintaining flavor and appeal.

“The beauty of community-based participation is to work together to provide health education through innovative methods that reflect the meanings and values of the community,” Hatchett says. | PERRY DRAKE