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Social Support Among Latina Immigrant Women: Bridge Persons as Mediators of Cervical Cancer Screening

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Abstract

New Latina immigrants face numerous linguistic, cultural, logistical, and material barriers to cervical cancer screenings. Promotoras (lay health advisors) are a proven strategy to promote utilization of care. Since the mid-1990s, interventions in North Carolina have aimed to connect Latina immigrants to a broader range of bridge persons. This study assessed the effect of bridge persons on utilization of cervical cancer screening by Latina immigrants in North Carolina. Women were recruited in Spanish-language churches in four counties (N = 223). Logistic regression results show that persons known through advocacy organizations appeared to increase probability of recent Pap screening by an average of 10.4 percentage points (p < 0.05).Promotoras remain more effective, increasing probability of screening by 12.9 percentage points (p < 0.05) but few women (14%) knew one. No association was found with other bridge person profiles. Interventions are needed to better engage all bridge persons in linking immigrants to preventive health services.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Gerontology and Health Care Research, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island

    Melanie R. Wasserman

  2. Department of Health Policy and Administration, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina

    Deborah E. Bender, Shoou-Yih Lee, Joseph P. Morrissey & Edward C. Norton

  3. Department of Sociology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina

    Ted Mouw

  4. Center for Gerontology and Health Care Research, Brown University, Box G-S311, Providence, Rhode Island, 02912

    Melanie R. Wasserman

Authors
  1. Melanie R. Wasserman
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  2. Deborah E. Bender
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  3. Shoou-Yih Lee
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  4. Joseph P. Morrissey
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  5. Ted Mouw
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  6. Edward C. Norton
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Correspondence to Melanie R. Wasserman.

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Wasserman, M.R., Bender, D.E., Lee, SY. et al. Social Support Among Latina Immigrant Women: Bridge Persons as Mediators of Cervical Cancer Screening. J Immigrant Health 8, 67–84 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10903-006-6343-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10903-006-6343-0

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