One of our goals has been to build capacity and economic stability for Promotores de Salud/Community Health Workers in Oregon. We are proud to announce that our first cohort in Somos Salud – Familias’ culturally-specific, Spanish language CHW Training & Certification Program – was a huge success.
We had a total of 24 graduates with participants from 8 organizations across Multnomah, Clackamas, Washington, and Marion County.
In addition to offering the 90-hour training, we hope to provide continuing education opportunities for Promotores to maintain their certification, as well as one-on-one support for Promotores who need assistance with the application and renewal process.
Our next cohort starts on June 13-August 2, 8:30am-4pm. It will be held in-personand in Spanish.
**Familias adopted the term Latiné to describe our communities in an inclusive manner. We recognize that there is no single term that will encompass everyone.**
In April 2020, Familias en Acción (Familias) created its HIV/ STI Sexual Health Program. The program is part of Oregon Health Authority’s END HIV Oregon strategy. In Oregon, HIV cases have increased in urban, rural and frontier areas across the state (see the “Why HIV prevention” section below to see the stats).
The increase in new infections in our communities can be attributed, in part, to the complexity of this issue. Acknowledging this complexity points our efforts to a range of interconnected tactics, each equally critical to eliminating HIV in Oregon’s Latiné populations. For example, we must consider: the influence of socio economic factors; stalled prevention efforts and the need to increase accessibility to prevention, screening, and treatment; how behavior influences risk; stigma and its implications; and how community leadership can be developed.
We know we can’t end HIV alone. Community participation is essential in formulating a more effective strategy to combat HIV in Oregon and long-term community engagement is critical to sustaining the involvement of communities in the design and delivery of the strategy.
Why HIV Prevention?
Although testing is low, new HIV diagnoses are high among Latine people in Oregon, particularly males. Here are some current statistics:
Although 12.7% of Oregon’s population is Latine, 24.6% of HIV cases diagnosed between 2018-2022 were Latiné – in other words, 1 in 4 people diagnosed with HIV in recent years were Latine.
Rates of new HIV diagnosis among Latine people increased by more than 50% in 2022 compared to the previous 3 years.
Increases of HIV diagnosis among Latine people increased in urban, rural, and frontier areas of Oregon – with the largest increases in rural and frontier areas.
Rates of new HIV diagnosis are more than 10 times higher among Latine males than Latine females.
We can change these trends- prevention works!
PrEP, taken as a daily pill or periodic injection, is 99% effective in preventing HIV transmission. People living with HIV, who take HIV medication and reach undetectable viral loads have zero chance of transmitting HIV to their sex partners (this is called U=U or Undetectable = Untransmittable). The Oregon Health Plan and most health insurance plans cover these medicines to prevent and treat HIV; the Healthier Oregon Program provides coverage to many people living in Oregon who do not have documentation. Programs like CAREAssist and HIV case management help people in all Oregon communities start and stay on medications, so they can live longer, healthier lives.
Community-based messages and programs, delivered by people and agencies trusted by Latine community members, are urgently needed. We can end new HIV transmissions in Oregon!
We are excited to launch our first quarter of learning and engagement activities on February 14th! For our first quarter, our theme and topics will focus on addressing HIV and STI stigma.
Have you ever thought about how HIV and STI stigma can impact both mental health and sexual health outcomes? Or how factors like race, ethnicity and culture can contribute to or influence stigma?
Stigma often comes from a lack of understanding or fear driven by misleading or inaccurate information. We will explore how stigma shows up in our everyday lives, the lives of our peers, our families and our friends. We will share stories and ideas for way’s to destigmatize, including using people first language where we center the person and not their illness, behavior, or disability, etc.
What do we hope to achieve?
A greater awareness of unique issues and needs among Latiné communities to address HIV prevention, screening, and treatment in regions across Oregon.
Deeper connections and relationships amongst each other to support potential, future collaboration.
What do we hope you learn?
Define taboo and stigma
Identify the negative impacts of stigma on mental, emotional, physical health.
Provide examples of myths or misconceptions that contribute to stigma
Translate foundational learning to lived experience
Discuss how to address and decrease individual and cultural stigmas around taboo topics including sexual health, HIV, substance use, mental health, etc.
Details: Latine and HIV Collaborative Virtual Learning Series on HIV Stigma
Description: Join our panel of guest presenters to learn more about cultural Stigmas and its impacts on mental, emotional and physical health and wellbeing and hear from other community leaders across the state. This session will include an opportunity for audience participation!
Meet our guest speakers
Amador Perez (HE/HIM/HIS)
Harm Reduction Specialist
Eastern Oregon Center for Independent Living
Richard Rojas-Perez (HE/HIM/HIS)
Assistant Director of HIV Prevention and Harm Reduction
Eastern Oregon Center for Independent Living
**Language access: This session will be facilitated in English with Spanish interpretation available. Breakout sessions will be facilitated in both English and Spanish- all are welcome!**
Keep an eye out for our February newsletter and check back on our website where we will share more about the upcoming events in this 3-part series:
March 2024: Community Stories: Stories of how stigma “shows up” in our lives as Latine Community Members
April 2024: Community Conversation: How do we address stigma as Latine community members?
Familias en Acción is committed to continue to provide opportunities for shared learning around HIV prevention. We invite individuals and organizations in Oregon to participate and share ideas for doing this work collectively. Stay tuned to learn of upcoming learning events and opportunities to stay engaged: Sign up for our monthly newsletter!
Do you have questions or want to see how you can participate? Contact Ayla Rosen (ayla@familiasenaccion.org)
This is our 1st of 3 activities in our 3-part learning series on HIV stigma. Everyone is invited to participate and learn as we center Latine community voices and experiences.
Ayla Rosen, MPH and Ingrid Lopez, CHW will be presenting a session on Latine and HIV/STI Community Education and Prevention at this year’s Western Forum in Seattle, WA.
Registration is open for Familias’ sexual health education community classes, Me Cuido, Te Cuido. Classes are virtual, in Spanish and offered to community members across Oregon
To support our learning journey, we are focused on eliminating gaps in service utilization by connecting people to resources for prevention, care, and treatment. Listed here are links to a curated excellent resources:
Our mission is to “strengthen the health and well-being of Latino families and communities”. The immigration statuses of Latino families and communities in Oregon can have a great impact on their health and well-being, especially given the current political and social climate. In early August, the Trump administration announced a final rule that changes the public charge policies used by the government to determine whether or not an individual seeking legal entry into the U.S. or adjustments to residency status (i.e., getting a green card) is denied. Under this new rule that is scheduled to take effect October 15th, 2019, the Trump administration will now consider the use of previously excluded programs (e.g., non-emergency Medicaid for non-pregnant adults, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and several housing programs) in determining if an individual will be a public charge (Source: Kaiser Family Foundation).
As a result, this new rule is sowing fear, uncertainty, and anxiety among many families and communities with immigrant populations, especially for Latino families and communities in Oregon. This has not only led to misconceptions over the new rule and who it applies to but has also prompted some Latinos- both documented and undocumented- to withdraw themselves and their children from public programs that allow them to access vital health and social services, thus negatively affecting the health and well-being of Latino families.
What is being done to reduce the negative impact for familias throughout Oregon?
The state of Oregon has joined a few other states in legally challenging the new rule, stating that it creates unnecessary barriers and unjustly targets immigrants and their families who use public benefit programs.
At the local level, Familias en Acción has partnered with Adelante Mujeres and other non-profits throughout Oregon to host a community forum in Spanish that is catered towards the Latino community, discuss the changes to public charge and provide the appropriate resources and general information. This is also being done to help reduce fears and confusion surrounding the issue, mitigate the negative social and health impacts on familias, and strengthen the well-being of familias.
What can you do as an individual or as an organization?
Please download and share the flyer with information for the community forum/foro comunitario in your communities! We want this to reach as many people as possible in the Latino communities throughout Oregon:
As a member of the National Council of La Raza (NCLR) we are working to make sure that the 12 million eligible Latinos have the information and tools they need to register and vote on Election Day. NCLR partnered with MiTú to create a voter registration website, www.latinosvote2016.org, to make registering easy and convenient, especially for young voters.
The new app, Latinos Vote, allows users to seamlessly register to vote right from their smartphone. This targets a pivotal demographic as one million Latinos turn 18 every year.
In 2012, 11.2 million Latinos voted and made headlines. Today, there are more than 10 million Latinos eligible to register to vote. Many Latinos will be the first in their families to become a voter, and many of them say they do not know where to register. Working together we can make sure that they have the information and tools they need to register, and to vote on Election Day.
Answer2Cancer is happening April 23, 2016 in Portland, Oregon
Those undergoing cancer treatment (and their caregivers) know there is so much to know. While Portland, and all of Oregon, are the hotbeds for cutting-edge cancer research, Answer2Cancer has been created to help patients and their caregivers/ helpers overcome the challenges of treatments and learn helpful, healthful survivor strategies. We’re creating community for patients with all types of cancer. We don’t discriminate, because cancer doesn’t.
Answer2Cancer is by and for patients who, while going through cancer treatments, realized they didn’t know what they didn’t know. So why not pass along the hard-earned wisdom? We’re planning an all-day event on April 23, 2016 to address the myriad questions that we patients have about all things cancer: treatment protocols, survivorship planning, finances, health plan coordination, intimacy, exercise, nutrition, etc.
This event is free of charge. Each attendee must pre-register.
Spanish translation will be available at this event.
By Consuelo Saragoza, Multnomah County Health Department
“Si no tienes tu salud, no tienes nada.” I’ve heard this saying from my mother my entire life. At 88, she still says it. That’s why, like lots of people, I try to eat healthy food, get regular exercise, and see my doctor for regular check-ups and health screenings. Once I turned 50, those health screenings began to include screening for colorectal cancer.
Screening is looking for cancer in people who have no symptoms of the disease. In the case of colorectal cancer (cancer of the colon or rectum), screening can often find the disease at an early, more treatable stage. It can also prevent some colon or rectal cancers altogether. This is because some screening tests can find growths (called polyps), which can then be removed before they have a chance to become cancerous.
Unfortunately, Latinos have the lowest colorectal cancer screening rate of all racial and ethnic groups in Multnomah County. According to the most recent information, only 20.8% of Latinos in Multnomah County were up to date on recommended colorectal cancer screenings. The American Cancer Society’s goal is by 2018 to get 80% of all people up to date with their screenings. As a community we have a long way to go.
Though deaths from colorectal cancer in the Latino community are lower than those for other racial and ethnic groups in Multnomah County, they are on the rise. Deaths from colorectal cancer for Latinos have doubled in the last decade.
That’s why talking to your doctor and getting screened are so important. Talk to your family and friends about getting screened too. It may be uncomfortable at first, but the more we talk about this together, the healthier we all can be.
Why haven’t you been screened for Colorectal Cancer?
It’s embarrassing. I don’t want to talk to my doctor about that!
Yes, it can be difficult to talk with your doctor or your family about things to do with the colon or rectum. It may be a little embarrassing for you, but doctors talk about this all the time with other patients and are not embarrassed.
It’s scary. What if they find cancer?
Cancer is frightening. But cancer of the colon and rectum can actually be prevented and successfully treated when caught early by screening. Screening can mean more happy and healthy time with your family.
I feel healthy, so I don’t need one:
Many people think if they feel healthy, they don’t need to have the test.Colorectal cancer can be symptomless, especially early in the disease. You may not know if anything is wrong. If you wait until symptoms show up, cancer can be very advanced. Why not get screened and be sure?
Manager, Health Policy Project at National Council of La Raza (NCLR)
Steven T. Lopez is the manager of the Health Policy Project at the National Council of La Raza. As manager, Mr. Lopez leads the development and advancement of public policies aimed at increasing the opportunity and ability of Latinos to achieve optimal health no matter who they are, where they live, or how much they earn.
His work has focused on increasing health coverage opportunities for the millions of Latinos who could gain health insurance through the Affordable Care Act, Medicaid, and the Children’s Health Insurance Program, as well as advancing options for the remaining uninsured.
The intersection of nutrition, hunger, and childhood obesity is another priority area for Lopez, given that Hispanic children are more likely than their peers to be overweight or obese. His current attention focuses most specifically on these two priorities.
Lopez holds master’s degrees in public policy and public health from the University of California at Berkeley and a bachelor’s degree from Stanford University.
As our Opening Keynote speaker, Steven Lopez will engage the conference attendees in a discussion of national immigration policies and the connection to Latino health disparities.
Immigration and Latino Health:
The Journey Ahead
The 2016 LHEC will examine the unique health issues faced by Latino immigrant communities in the United States. While conflict and poverty in the immigrants’ countries of origin are major reasons for crossing the border in the U.S., it is less clear what impact this trauma has on the health of immigrant communities. Crossing without documents can produce long term health effects; even if documented, immigrants still face major political, cultural, and economic barriers that impact health. We will explore these experiences in relation to age, gender, economics, language, and sociocultural traditions, focusing on how these factors affect health and healthcare delivery in the U.S.
Reducing Health Disparities and Improving Quality of Care for Latinos: Cambia Health Foundation Grant Expands Culturally Appropriate Palliative Care Training Across Pacific Northwest
– Investment Allows Familias en Acción to provide training to 2,400 health professionals in Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Utah –
PORTLAND, Ore. (Feb. 9, 2016) – A recent Cambia Health Foundation investment of $318,900 will expand an Oregon-based training curriculum in culturally appropriate palliative care of Latinos to Washington, Idaho and Utah. The Foundation grant will allow Familias en Acción to provide advanced palliative care training to 2,400 health professionals and patient navigators in all four states.
An important element of reducing health disparities in communities of color, cultural competence – or culturally appropriate care – is the ability of providers and organizations to effectively deliver health care services that meet the social, cultural, and linguistic needs of patients.
Health care participants in the Familias en Acción 2014 Palliative Care of Latinos Summit overwhelmingly expressed the need for training in providing palliative care for the entire age range of their Latino patients. The expanded curriculum, developed in partnership with the University of Portland, will increase healthcare providers’ understanding of how palliative care for Latinos is different than for non-Hispanic patients. Participants will understand how they, individually and systemically, can empower patients to become active in their care.
According to the National Hispanic Council on Aging, Hispanic older adults disproportionately suffer from afflictions such as diabetes and HIV; and it’s estimated that more than 80% have at least one chronic condition, with diabetes mortality rates twice those of the general population. Latino children and young adults are experiencing increasing rates of severe and life threatening diseases, such as cancer and chronic kidney disease, with poorer health outcomes and higher mortality rates than non-Hispanics.
“Culturally appropriate palliative care can help improve health outcomes and quality of care,” said Elyse Salend, Cambia Health Foundation program officer. “This investment fits Cambia Health Foundation’s goals of advancing quality, access and understand of palliative care, and transforming health care to be more person-focused, affordable and equitable.”
“This curriculum is an engaging, multi-modal training addressing culturally specific palliative care of Latinos by providing relevant training on cross-cultural issues to health professionals that reduce cultural and linguistic barriers to quality patient care,” said Gail Brownmiller, executive director of Familias en Acción.
Development and roll-out of the expanded curriculum is a highly collaborative effort planned in three phases:
1) Using recommendations from a national advisory council of experts in palliative care and in Latino health, data from focus groups, individual interviews and a literature review, Familias en Acción staff will develop the online instructional program and videos in partnership with University of Portland Academic Technology Services.
2) Health professionals throughout Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Utah will receive palliative care training in partnerships with health systems including:
Providence Health Services in Oregon and Washington
Alphonsus Health System and St. Luke’s Health system in Idaho
3) The California State University Institute for Palliative Care will incorporate the advanced curriculum into their catalog of palliative care courses, with both the in-person and online trainings offering CEUs.
About Familias en Acción
The mission of Familias en Acción is to promote holistic family well-being for Latinos through community engagement, education, research and advocacy for social change. The organization’s priorities include chronic disease patient navigation and education, Spanish language support groups, community leadership development, and elimination of health disparities. Learn more at https://www.familiasenaccion.org/
About Cambia Health Foundation
Cambia Health Foundation is the corporate foundation of Cambia Health Solutions, a total health solutions company dedicated to transforming the way people experience health care. A 501(c)(3) grant-making organization, the Foundation strategically invests and partners with organizations to advance palliative care quality, access and understanding; improve the behavioral health of underserved children; and transform health care to a more person-focused, equitable and economically sustainable system. Learn more at www.cambiahealthfoundation.org or follow us on Twitter.
Compartiendo Esperanza: Understanding Emotional Health
NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, is the nation’s largest grassroots mental health organization. NAMI advocates for access to services, treatment, support and research, and is committed to raising awareness and building a community of hope for all of those in need.
In the Latino community, there is little information and understanding about mental health and high levels of stigma. NAMI Clackamas has a variety of programs that target the Latino community.
Compartiendo Esperanza: Understanding Emotional Health is a bilingual program specifically tailored for the Latino community. It includes a 90-minute interactive presentation to be given in different settings (community centers, churches, PTA meetings, etc.)
Program Goals:
Develop positive and lasting relationships with Latino organizations. Educate Latinos about mental health problems, signs, symptoms, treatment and support. Address mental health stigma in the Latino community by providing science- based information on mental health. Increase understanding and awareness of mental health recovery. Introduce NAMI education and support programs to the Latino community.
For questions about this program and other services available in Spanish through NAMI Clackamas, please contact:
Yvette Mata Rivas
Latino Outreach and Volunteer Coordinator
Coordinadora del desarollo comunitario de Latinos y voluntarios yvette@namicc.org
Familias en Acción joins the movement on December 1st!
#GivingTuesday is about giving back and supporting our community. #OregoniansGive is our local campaign to bring together people in a statewide #GivingTuesday celebration of what it means to be an Oregonian.
Over the past four years, #GivingTuesday has become a global day of giving. Nonprofits from around the world have had success with reaching new donors, inspiring more giving, and recruiting new volunteers.
We are just 7 days away from #GivingTuesday. On December 1st, make your donation to Familias en Acción. Join the movement. Your participation can make all the difference in helping us to achieve our fundraising goals.
Visit #OregoniansGive for more info.
Join the movement. Make your donation to Familias en Acción.
Unfortunately, Latinos have the lowest colorectal cancer screening rate of all racial and ethnic groups in Multnomah County. According to 
