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BACKGROUND: Kentucky’s population is primarily Caucasian (86%) with about 8% being African American. Recent census data shows that the Hispanic population in Kentucky has more than doubled in the last decade from 1.5% (59,939) in 2000 to 3.1% (132,836) in 2010. There is a lack of health-related population level data on Hispanic residents in Kentucky mainly because this is a transient population and very difficult to survey using the standard Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) phone survey. The objective of this study is to explore a new mode of collecting data with the BRFSS survey by using face-to-face interviewing administered by trained bilingual health promoters or ‘promotoras’. Additionally, the study attempts to identify health risk factors and chronic diseases affecting the Hispanic population in Kentucky.
METHODS: Twelve counties that had more than 3% of Hispanic population were selected. A Spanish version of the core portion of the 2012 BRFSS Questionnaire with two additional modules was used to conduct this survey of Hispanic residents in each county. Convenience sampling was used to recruit the respondents. The mode of interviewing selected was face-to-face using trained lay health workers or ‘promotoras’ who recorded responses on hard copy of the questionnaire. Skip patterns were utilized appropriately. Data were analyzed using SPSS and SAS software. In 2013, the survey was repeated in ten out of the twelve counties.
RESULTS: The total sample size from each year of the Hispanic Survey was much higher than the number of Hispanic respondents on the standard BRFSS phone survey (1,507 vs 170 in 2012; 1,499 vs 101 in 2013). About 80% of participants on the Hispanic Survey were aged 18 to 44 years, and about 65% had less than a high school education. These two demographic groups are typically more difficult to reach on the BRFSS phone survey. Demographic characteristics, health risk behaviors, and chronic conditions reported among 2012 Hispanic Survey participants were similar to results from the 2013 Hispanic Survey.
CONCLUSIONS: Face-to-face interviewing by lay health workers proved to be a good method of collecting data from a transient population for which no data was available. Combining a probability sampling technique with face-to-face interviewing by promotoras could yield the population level health data needed for the Hispanic population in Kentucky.