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Photonovels: An Innovative Approach to Address Health Disparities and Sustainability

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Abstract

Medically underserved and underrepresented communities have high rates of health disparities. In the greater Tampa Bay area, communities of color are disproportionately affected by chronic diseases such as cancer. In response to these concerns and as part of a lay health advisory program being implemented by the Center for Equal Health, a University of South Florida/H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute partnership, our group created a photonovel, an educational tool which explains topics using a graphic novel style. The photonovel was designed to educate community members about prostate cancer and was compared to standard cancer educational materials currently used for cancer outreach. We found that our photonovel served as an effective health education tool to address cancer health disparities in medically underserved and underrepresented populations in Tampa Bay.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank The Graduate School of the University of South Florida who funded this project and Dr. Karen Liller, Ph.D., Dean of the Graduate School, and Miranda Holloway, B.S. and Christopher James Otten, M.F.A. who contributed to the project design and implementation.

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Public Health, University of South Florida, c/o Julie Baldwin, 13201 Bruce B. Downs Blvd. MDC 56, Tampa, FL, 33612, USA

    Kara McGinnis, F. Alejandro Montiel-Ishino, Maisha Kambon Standifer, Deanna Wathington & Julie A. Baldwin

  2. The Heart of East Tampa Front Porch, Tampa, FL, USA

    Johnetta Goldsmith

Authors
  1. Kara McGinnis
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  2. F. Alejandro Montiel-Ishino
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  3. Maisha Kambon Standifer
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  4. Deanna Wathington
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  5. Johnetta Goldsmith
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  6. Julie A. Baldwin
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Maisha Kambon Standifer.

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McGinnis, K., Montiel-Ishino, F.A., Standifer, M.K. et al. Photonovels: An Innovative Approach to Address Health Disparities and Sustainability. J Canc Educ 29, 441–448 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13187-014-0607-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13187-014-0607-0

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