eagle-i University of Hawai'i ManoaUniversity of Hawai'i Manoa
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Kaholokula Lab

Summary:

Dr. Kaholokula is interested in the study of biological, psychological, and socio-cultural factors (and their interplay) affecting the etiology and management of chronic diseases (and their risk factors) in Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders and in the designing and testing of behavioral interventions for primary and secondary prevention. His clinical interest is in behavioral assessment for clinical case formulation.

People:

Resources:

Human Studies

  • Partners in Care diabetes self-management intervention ( Crossover study )

    This is a feasibility study using a randomized controlled trial (RCT) design in which 100 Native Hawaiians (NHs) and other Pacific Islanders (PPs) will be randomized to either a 3-month diabetes self-management group (DSMG; N=50) or a delayed intervention control group (CG; N=50). Participants in the DSMG will receive culturally-tailored, group diabetes self-management education delivered in a community setting by trained community peer educators. To meet this objective, we have partnered with four community-based organizations: 1) Hawai`i Maoli Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs, 2) Ke Ola Mamo Native Hawaiian Health Care System, 3) Kokua Kalihi Valley Comprehensive Family Services, and 4) Kula No N? Po`e Hawai`i. These four organizations provide services to a large number of Pacific People to include, but not limited to, Native Hawaiians, Samoans, Filipinos, and Chuukese. They already have intervention research experience as members of the PILI 'Ohana CBPR Project. The 3-month face-to-face intervention will be community-based and community-led by trained community peer educators from these four partnering community organizations. Individuals with a hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c; average blood sugar levels) >=8% will be recruited for the study because they represent the most at-risk for diabetes-related complications.

    Over a 1-year accrual period, the community partners will recruit and enroll 100 eligible NHs and PPs (25 participants per a participating community), as well as deliver and evaluate the intervention in their respective community settings. The primary outcomes of our study are hemoglobin A1c and self-reported diabetes specific quality of life. Secondary outcomes are cholesterol levels (including HDL, LDL, total cholesterol, and triglycerides), blood pressure, body mass index, and psychosocial adaptation.

  • Partnerships to overcome obesity disparities in Hawaii: 18-month CBPR study ( Parallel group study )

    Obesity and overweight are well recognized public health concerns in the US and the magnitude of excess weight is greater among racial/ethnic minority populations. For Native Hawaiians (NHs) and Pacific Islanders (PPs) 70 to 80% of adults are estimated to be overweight or obese. Obesity-related disparities such as diabetes and heart disease (CVD) are also increasing among NHs and PPs. To address obesity and related disparities, a community-based participatory research (CBPR) partnership was formed named the Partnership for Improving Lifestyle Interventions (PILI) 'Ohana Program (Pili meaning relationship and 'Ohana meaning family).

    The PILI 'Ohana Program (POP) consists of 5 community organizations and the Department of Native Hawaiian Health (DNHH) at the John A. Burns School of Medicine (JABSOM) of the University of Hawai'i (UH). With a 3-year CBPR planning grant from the National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NCMHD), the POP was successful at establishing this community-academic partnership aimed at obesity-related disparities in Hawai'i and in implementing a pilot intervention to address weight loss maintenance (the PILI 'Ohana Intervention) in NHs and PPs, which serves as preliminary data for this study.

    The specific aims are as follow: 1) To identify the aspects of the PILI 'Ohana (family + community focused) Intervention deemed effective by former participants and community-peer educators of the pilot intervention. 2) To test whether a face-to-face or DVD delivery method of the PILI 'Ohana intervention is effective in improving weight loss maintenance versus a control group in NHs and PPs. 3) To identify the strengths of the PILI 'Ohana Program that supports a co-learning and co-equal environment.


Last updated: 2013-06-17T09:47:56.353-05:00

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The eagle-i Consortium is supported by NIH Grant #5U24RR029825-02 / Copyright 2016