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News from Cambridge Health Alliance
March 2, 2010
Cambridge Health Alliance Researcher Wins Grant
to Explore Emergency Preparedness in Haitian-Americans
 Cambridge,
MA…Researcher Linda Marc, ScD, MPH, has received a grant
from the Harvard School of Public Health to examine public health
and emergency preparedness in Haitian-Americans. Dr. Marc is based
at the Center for Multicultural Mental Health Research at Cambridge
Health Alliance, a Harvard-affiliated health system.
The study will investigate how persons of Haitian ancestry in the
United States are exposed to messages pertaining to public health
emergencies, infectious disease outbreaks, and epidemics. It will
be conducted in three U.S. cities (Boston, Miami, and New York),
and Mg Marketing Research Services, a Haitian-owned company in New
York, has been retained to identify, screen, and recruit Haitian
participants.
"The findings from this study will help us understand the
unique cultural factors that influence attention to public health
messages and impact behaviors, such as disaster preparation measures,"
said Dr. Marc, who is Haitian-American. "This type of research
is particularly important for ethnic and minority populations, because
studies show these groups have more difficulty accessing effective
and usable information during public health emergencies."
The recent earthquake in Haiti illustrated that health communications
are critical for helping individuals prepare for epidemics and respond
to and recover from emergencies. "Data generated from this
study will inform public health officials about the preferred media
channels for particular groups, including television, radio, social
networks, local agencies, and websites, and advise how information
can be used to motivate the population to act in the event of an
emergency," added Dr. Marc.
Dr. Marc is an expert in minority health who specializes in the
influence of psychological and social factors on health behaviors.
She has conducted studies in populations with HIV and mental illness,
and has examined health outcomes in persons of Haitian descent.
Her research and knowledge of the Haitian community resulted in
a 2007 appointment to the U.S. Census Bureau's Race & Ethnicity
Advisory Committee on African-Americans, where she serves as Vice-Chair.
Dr. Marc holds both a master's in health and social behavior and
a doctorate in social epidemiology from the Harvard School of Public
Health, along with a master's in public health from the Yale School
of Public Health.
Dr. Marc will be working with principal investigators K. "Vish"
Viswanath, PhD, and Marcia Testa, MPH, PhD, both at the Harvard
School of Public Health Center for Public Health Preparedness, where
she was recently named a Visiting Scientist. Funding for the grant's
parent award is from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The Center for Multicultural Mental Health Research, based
at Cambridge Health Alliance, generates innovative mental health
services research that impacts policy, practice, and service delivery
for multicultural populations. The Center is comprised of an interdisciplinary
group of psychologists, social policy analysts, health economists,
psychiatrists, data analysts, sociologists, and other professionals
who assist in the research and analysis of Center projects. For
more information, visit www.multiculturalmentalhealth.org.
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