July 26, 2016

Helping Detroit's most vulnerable

Over the coming months, look for videos, stories and events that feature some of the many Wayne State initiatives and passionate individuals committed to eradicating health disparities. This content is part of WSU's Warriors in Action campaign highlighting how Wayne State is making a difference.

Whether tackling HIV, asthma or adolescent obesity, Sylvie Naar-King, professor of family medicine, works with her team every day to minimize health disparities that affect young people throughout the Detroit area.

“Kids are struggling with these health issues for many different reasons,” said Naar-King. “They often don’t have health insurance, strong family support or access to other resources. That means we have to come up with realistic, affordable and evidence-based interventions that actually make a difference.”

For example, Naar-King’s study “Interventionist Procedures for Adherence to Weight Loss Recommendations in Black Adolescents” guided adolescents and their families through various treatment options — often in their own homes. Participants learned and practiced skills — such as reading food labels — which helped them adhere to weight-loss strategies through healthier eating and improved exercise programs. They were taught to trim about 500 calories from their daily food intake and to monitor physical activity levels.

Currently, unrelated HIV and asthma studies are testing home-based and technology interventions — such as text messages and computer programs — to encourage people to take care of themselves and educate family members about how they can best support them. The goal is to see who responds best to which methods, and how much those interventions cost.

Naar-King regularly works with colleagues in psychology, social work and the basic sciences, as well as physicians from several different disciplines. If students are interested in working to address health disparities, Naar-King recommends they consider earing a degree in public health because it emphasizes multidisciplinary and team science.

Wayne State recently launched an undergraduate degree program in public health and enrollment is now open. For more information, visit clas.wayne.edu/publichealth.

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