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Evaluation of a Hepatitis B Lay Health Worker Intervention for Chinese Americans and Canadians

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Abstract

Hepatitis B testing is recommended for immigrants from countries where hepatitis B infection is endemic. However, only about one-half of Chinese in North America have received hepatitis B testing. We conducted a randomized controlled trial to evaluate the effectiveness of a hepatitis B lay health worker intervention for Chinese Americans/Canadians. Four hundred and sixty individuals who had never been tested for hepatitis B were identified from community-based surveys of Chinese conducted in Seattle, Washington, and Vancouver, British Columbia. These individuals were randomly assigned to receive a hepatitis B lay health worker intervention or a direct mailing of physical activity educational materials. Follow-up surveys were completed 6 months after randomization. Self-reported hepatitis B testing was verified through medical records review. A total of 319 individuals responded to the follow-up survey (69% response rate). Medical records data verified hepatitis B testing since randomization for 9 (6%) of the 142 experimental group participants and 3 (2%) of the 177 control group participants (P = 0.04). At follow-up, a higher proportion of individuals in the experimental arm than individuals in the control arm knew that hepatitis B can be spread by razors (P < 0.001) and during sexual intercourse (P = 0.07). Our findings suggest that lay health worker interventions can impact hepatitis B-related knowledge. However, our hepatitis B lay health worker intervention had a very limited impact on hepatitis B testing completion. Future research should evaluate other intervention approaches to improving hepatitis B testing rates among Chinese in North America.

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Acknowledgments

This publication was supported by grant R01-CA-113663 from the National Cancer Institute, cooperative agreement U01-CA-114640 from the National Cancer Institute, and cooperative agreement U48-DP-000050 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Cancer Prevention Program, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, 1100 Fairview Avenue North, Seattle, WA, 98109, USA

    Vicky M. Taylor, Elizabeth Acorda & Erica Woodall

  2. Cancer Control Research Program, British Columbia Cancer Agency, 675 West 10th Avenue, Vancouver, BC, V5Z 1L3, Canada

    T. Gregory Hislop & Chong Teh

  3. Department of Medicine, University of Washington, 401 Broadway Avenue, Seattle, WA, 98104, USA

    Shin-Ping Tu & Mei-Po Yip

  4. Department of Public Health Sciences, Clinical Sciences Building, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2G3, Canada

    Yutaka Yasui

Authors
  1. Vicky M. Taylor
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  2. T. Gregory Hislop
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  3. Shin-Ping Tu
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  4. Chong Teh
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  5. Elizabeth Acorda
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  6. Mei-Po Yip
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  7. Erica Woodall
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  8. Yutaka Yasui
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Correspondence to Vicky M. Taylor.

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The contents of the article are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the National Cancer Institute nor the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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Taylor, V.M., Hislop, T.G., Tu, SP. et al. Evaluation of a Hepatitis B Lay Health Worker Intervention for Chinese Americans and Canadians. J Community Health 34, 165–172 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-008-9138-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-008-9138-0

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