Literature and practice are limited on strategies to reach elder Southeast Asian refugees by using their strengths and resilience. This article presents the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)-funded Cambodian Community Health 2010 Program in Lowell, Massachusetts, as a case example. It provides refugee history, project background, community survey results about strengths and risks, literature on Strengths-Based Approaches, outreach activities, and evaluation. The focus is elimination of health disparities in cardiovascular disease and diabetes. Key findings highlight involving elders in organizing events, avoiding reliance on literacy, integrating health promotion with socialization, using ties with Buddhist temples, developing transportation alternatives, and utilizing local Khmer language media. Implications include applicability to other refugee communities with low literacy, high levels of trauma, limited English, and strong religious involvement.
Self-reported disability among recently resettled refugees in the United States: Results from the national annual survey of refugees
The prevalence rates and correlates of mental or physical disability among recently resettled refugees, who undergo strenuous journeys before arriving in the US, remain unknown,