Training the Honduran Health Alliance Health Promoters: A Program and Evaluation Plan to Increase First-Time Cervical Cancer Screening in Southern Honduras

Cervical cancer is the leading cause of cancer death among women in Honduras. The Honduran Health Alliance (HHA), a student-led organization created in 2002 by medical and public health students from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, aims to reduce the morbidity and mortality associated with cervical cancer among women from six rural communities in Choluteca, the southernmost state of Honduras. There are many factors that determine why a woman may or may not receive screening services from the HHA. In order to assess whether the HHA is most effectively meeting the needs of the target population as it relates to its mission of cervical cancer reduction, the author conducted preliminary research in the communities in question. Research activities included key informant interviews and focus groups with village women to assess the reasons that women in HHA partner communities do or do not attend clinic. Based on the results of this formative research, the HHA would like to propose a more formal health promoter education program by conducting a series of health promoter trainings and setting goals and targets for education and recruitment. The trainings will focus on cervical cancer screening, diagnosis, and treatment information, as well as motivational interviewing techniques and tips for addressing common health beliefs that may keep women from seeking out services. The overall goal of this program is to increase the HHA's ability to effectively reach out to women most in need of the services offered by the HHA and to further its mission of reducing cervical cancer morbidity and mortality among women in this geographic area of Honduras.Master of Public Healt