El Camino Hospital introduces CHI program to educate Chinese community on health disparities

El Camino Hospital has launched a Chinese Health Initiative (CHI), designed to address the troubling and unique health disparities in the Silicon Valley's Chinese community and to accommodate their cultural preferences in education, screening and health care delivery.

The program includes a Chinese-speaking physician network, special health screenings and outreach targeted to the Chinese community, Chinese language health reference and educational materials and physician education on health disparities in the Chinese community, including chronic Hepatitis B, which affects 1 in 10 Asian/Pacific Islanders, compared to just 1 in 100 in the general U.S. population.

While the majority of Chinese-speaking residents in El Camino Hospital's service area have health insurance, they lack access to culturally appropriate and language-specific providers. This often creates obstacles to their ability to seek needed preventive care, diagnosis and treatment.

That's why the hospital assembled a network of 51 Chinese-speaking physicians covering an array of specialties and speaking a variety of dialects. The referral list has been distributed widely at major events and institutions in the Chinese community. It also will be available for download on the hospital's website. A 30-member Advisory Board of Chinese community leaders and physicians also was formed.

A recent California Office of Statewide Health Planning report confirmed that significant racial and ethnic health disparities persist in California. Among other things, Asian/Pacific Islanders have the highest mortality rate for heart attack, stroke, pneumonia, coronary artery treatment and coronary bypass graft surgery among all populations.

Census data also confirms that a seismic population shift is underway. By 2014, there will be 420,000 Asians in the Silicon Valley. Nearly 100 percent of net new residents (58,000) will be Asian, nearly a quarter of them Chinese.

El Camino Hospital has taken numerous steps to better accommodate Chinese cultural needs and preferences, including dietary options such as "Chinese porridge" in the inpatient breakfast menu and providing Chinese-language caregiver information and educational materials, and specially trained hospice volunteers to provide sensitive care around end-of-life issues.

Source: El Camino Hospital