Title : Nursing research and education: Empowering Latina cancer survivors through development of an innovative “Nueva Luz” survivorship education program for Latina breast cancer survivors
Abstract:
Aims: Latinos currently are the largest ethnic minority in the United States, as the number of Latinos and breast cancer survivors continues to grow. The need to develop education programs that are culturally congruent and linguistically appropriate for non-English speaking and limited English proficient ethnic minorities is increasingly vital for this population. Nueva Luz is an English and Spanish quality of life (QOL) intervention developed to address the educational needs of Latina breast cancer survivors and provide strategies to assist in their transition into survivorship.
Methods: A qualitative approach was used to evaluate the English and Spanish educational intervention (Nueva Luz). A purposive sample of eight Latina breast cancer survivors was selected from the group who received the intervention to participate in a digitally recorded interview. A semi-structured interview guide was used to evaluate and elicit information about the Nueva Luz education program. Data was analyzed using thematic analysis.
Results: Participants evaluated Nueva Luz and provided feedback regarding the intervention content, feasibility of implementation, acceptability, practicality, and the cultural and linguistic appropriateness. Providing a culturally congruent tailored intervention in the selected language of the participant and incorporating Latino core cultural values in all patient interactions is vital when working with Latinos in a health context. Findings provide evidence that the one-on-one tailored approach is a feasible and acceptable method of providing a bilingual psychosocial intervention. The provision of printed bilingual information along with the verbal instruction from a bilingual and culturally competent health care provider can be effective in helping Latina breast cancer survivor’s transition successfully into survivorship, improve QOL and contribute to better patient outcomes
Conclusions: The study informs our understanding of the cultural context in patient education content, delivery of psychosocial interventions and the impact of a tailored English and Spanish education on the QOL of Latinas following primary breast cancer treatment. . However, more intervention research is needed with Latina breast cancer survivors that consider contextual factors affecting survivorship outcomes and QOL The findings may also have relevance for other ethnic minority cancer survivors and provides evidence that may inform additional development and testing for future research.
