Self Reported Impact of FHH Modules:

“We need more education about good habits and life style--try, try, try, no quit!”

“I went to the doctor and he said I am fat. Now I exercise and eat more vegetables.”

“People is motivated by activities and we can learn much better.”

In this pilot study we learned the following:

1. FHH is viewed as a risk factor for chronic disease among Utah Hispanics.
2. FHH creates communication that builds family support for maintaining positive lifestyle changes.
   
3. Changes survey format to meet cultural needs were needed.
   
4. Misconceptions exist about heredity among Hispanics. We had to reinforce that disease, allergies, and conditions have a genetic component.
5. Genetic variance exists among family members:

· Perception of risk vary

· Variety of incentives needed!

The impact of our pilot study was determined through a pretest and a posttest survey administered to both groups. The survey was a 32-item paper and pencil questionnaire that assessed beliefs regarding the contribution of family history to the development of common chronic diseases in our participants were included. Our results are summarized in the table below.

Percent Change in FHH Attitudes, Knowledge and Behavior

ATTITUDE/BEHAVIOR	Percent Change
Felt motivated to make changes after participating	64%
Felt motivated to learn more	68%
Reported having talked to a family member about their FHH	64%
Reported changing their diet	55%
Reported visiting a medical professional	23%

Hispanic ESL class participants were self-selected and each class assigned as comparison (n=50) and experimental groups (n=50). Only the experimental group received instruction on the following FHH modules:

• Family Traits Trivia -This FHH teaching module encourages participants to observe the shared traits of family members, as well as the combination of traits that makes them unique.

• Pick the Risk: The Polygenic Pedigree Challenge -- Participants are challenged to track and record the passage of colored candies (representing genes) through generations of a family using a pedigree.

• Risk Continuum - A whole-class kinesthetic demonstration of what it means to be in a "risk group" for developing heart disease based on family history/genetics.

The Genetic Science Learning Center at the University of Utah has developed many FHH teaching modules originally designed for high school students. Elsie Lopez and I have adapted these module for the adult Hispanic population in Utah. We carried out an FHH pilot study intervention in the community last year. The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which FHH education had an impact on attitudes and health care seeking behaviors regarding chronic disease risk and FHH collection among participants.