Project Description:
(1) In the 2016/2017 Fiscal Year report, South Central Los Angeles Regional Center (SCLARC) reported that Per Capita Expenditure totaled for all age groups was $19,001 for African Americans, and $38,271 for Whites, a POS disparity of more that 50%. Of all African Americans in SCLARC's catchment area who are eligible for services, 18% do not have any authorized services and 20% have them but do not use them. POS data suggest that there is a critical need for building awareness in the community about Regional Center services for ASD, and for improving the African American community's awareness of ASD and its prevalence, as well as the community's trust in the service system.
(2) The overarching goal of this project is to develop and implement a faith-based parent-training program carried out by Community Health Advisors in a faith-based environment, to increase the parents' knowledge of the available services, and help them gain mastery and empowerment to advocate for these services.
Objectives
1) Provide a platform for parents of children, adolescents, young adults, and older adults with ASD to identify needs and discuss structural barriers that inhibit needed services acquisition;
2) Provide small-session awareness and education that will increase the self-efficacy of the participant leading to identifying and garnering appropriate services and resources for their children, adolescents, young adults, and older adults with ASD;
3) Provide printed information for reminders and Regional Center services navigation guidance;
4) Issue reminders by phone or in person to encourage participants in self-advocacy efforts.
(3) The project will follow a specific model, the Community - Partnered Participatory Framework (CPP) that consists of the following 4 stages: (1) identifying a health issue that fits community priorities and stakeholders' capacity to respond, (2) developing a coalition of community and other stakeholders that informs, supports, shares, and uses the products, (3) engaging the community through focus groups, workshops, symposia and conferences that provide information, determine readiness to proceed, and obtain input, and (4) initiating work groups that develop, implement, and evaluate action plans under a leadership council.
The USC UCEDD will serve as a collaborator to 1) analyze surveys and present the results to the project team; 2) to develop, manualize, administer and evaluate the faith-based, community-partnered awareness program, and 3) to help disseminate the program evaluation results in the community.
Target Audience:
Community Trainees / Short term trainees, Professionals and Para-Professionals, Family Members/Caregivers, Adults with Disabilities, Children/Adolescents with Disabilities/SHCN, General Public
Unserved or Under-served Populations:
Racial or Ethnic Minorities, Disadvantaged Circumstances, Geographic Areas, Urban, Specific Groups
