Aims: This feasibility study evaluated the impact of a culturally consistent diabetes educational program, led by a Latino pastor, on Latino community diabetes knowledge levels.
Method: Latino adults were recruited from two churches serving Latino populations, one identified as intervention, the other as nonintervention. Both churches received the American Diabetes Association's booklets on diabetes education, "Four Steps to Control Your Diabetes for Life." The intervention group also received weekly reviews of the booklet's information from the church pastor, who was educated about diabetes by a Latino family nurse practitioner. Pre- and postintervention levels of diabetes knowledge were measured using the Diabetes Knowledge Questionnaire.
Results: Mean changes in the Diabetes Knowledge Questionnaire (DKQ-24) survey from pretest to posttest indicated a significant increase in knowledge in both groups. Only the grades for the participants from the pastor-led group, however, moved from failure in knowledge to high levels of passing. One hundred percent of intervention group participants reported having read the literature.
Conclusions: This pilot study supports the feasibility of a local Latino pastor, as a culturally consistent diabetes educator, to increase Latino parishioner's knowledge of diabetes.
Keywords: Latino; community-based participatory research; diabetes; health disparities; patient education; quantitative evaluation.
© 2015 Society for Public Health Education.