Perceived Health Needs of Church Leaders and Members: A Secondary Data Analysis of the Mid-South Congregational Health Survey

Needs assessments have been successful in helping communities and congregations focus their health ministry efforts; however, most have used leader perceptions of congregational health needs. The purpose of this study was to examine and compare the self-reported needs of both church leaders and members to be addressed by their congregation. Church leaders (n = 369) and members (n = 459) from 92 congregations completed the 2019 Mid-South Congregational Health Survey. Frequencies and generalized linear mixed models (GLMM) were performed to examine the top 10 self-reported needs and associations by church role, respectively. Of the top 10 congregational needs, anxiety or depression, high blood pressure, stress, and healthy foods were ranked identically regardless of church role. Church leaders perceived obesity and diabetes to be important congregational health needs, whereas members perceived affordable health care and heart disease to be important congregational health needs. GLMM, controlling for within-church clustering and covariates, revealed church leaders were more likely than members to report obesity (odds ratio [OR]: 1.93, 95% confidence interval [CI] = [1.39, 2.67], p < .0001) and diabetes (OR: 1.73, 95% CI = [1.24, 2.41], p = .001) as congregational needs. Findings display similarities and differences in needs reported by church role. Including many perspectives when conducting congregational health needs assessments will assist the development of effective faith-based health promotion programs.

Reaching Youth Through Faith Leaders: Evaluation of the Faith Matters! Initiative

Faith leaders can be uniquely positioned to guide and support young people on health issues, particularly HIV/AIDS and sexual violence. Faith Matters!, a 2-day training workshop for faith leaders, was delivered in September 2021 in Zambia. Sixty-six faith leaders completed a questionnaire at baseline, 64 at posttraining, and 59 at 3-month follow-up. Participants' knowledge, beliefs, and comfort communicating about HIV/AIDS and sexual violence were assessed. More faith leaders accurately identified common places where sexual violence occurs at the 3-month point compared to baseline: at church (2 vs. 22, p = .000), the fields (16 vs. 29, p = .004), parties (22 vs. 36, p = .001), and clubs (24 vs. 35, p = .034). More faith leaders stated that they engaged in conversations that supported people living with HIV (48 at baseline vs. 53, p = .049 at 3-month follow-up). These findings can inform future HIV/AIDS initiatives focusing on increasing the capacity among communities of faith.

Faith and healthcare providers' perspectives about enhancing HIV biomedical interventions in Western Kenya

Adult HIV prevalence in Kenya was 5.9% in 2017. However, in the counties of Kisumu, Siaya, and Homa Bay, HIV prevalence was over 15%. Biomedical interventions, including home-based testing and counselling (HBTC), HIV treatment and pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) provide opportunities to reduce HIV transmission, particularly in rural communities with limited access to health services. Faith-based institutions play an important role in the Kenyan social fabric, providing over 40% of all health care services in Kenya, but have played limited roles in promoting HIV prevention interventions. We conducted qualitative interviews with 45 medical professionals and focus groups with 93 faith leaders in Kisumu and Busia Counties, Kenya. We explored their knowledge, opinions, and experiences in promoting biomedical HIV prevention modalities, including HBTC and PrEP. Knowledge about and engagement in efforts to promote HIV prevention modalities varied; few health providers had partnered with faith leaders on HIV prevention programmes. Faith leaders and health providers agreed about the importance of increasing faith leaders' participation in HIV prevention and were positive about increasing their HIV prevention partnerships. Most faith leaders requested capacity building to better understand biomedical HIV prevention modalities and expressed interest in collaborating with clinical partners to spread awareness about HIV prevention modalities.

Muslim communities learning about second-hand smoke (MCLASS): study protocol for a pilot cluster randomised controlled trial

BACKGROUND

In the UK, 40% of Bangladeshi and 29% of Pakistani men smoke cigarettes regularly compared to the national average of 24%. As a consequence, second-hand smoking is also widespread in their households which is a serious health hazard to non-smokers, especially children. Smoking restrictions in households can help reduce exposure to second-hand smoking. This is a pilot trial of 'Smoke Free Homes', an educational programme which has been adapted for use by Muslim faith leaders, in an attempt to find an innovative solution to encourage Pakistani- and Bangladeshi-origin communities to implement smoking restrictions in their homes. The primary objectives for this pilot trial are to establish the feasibility of conducting such an evaluation and provide information to inform the design of a future definitive study.

METHODS/DESIGN

This is a pilot cluster randomised controlled trial of 'Smoke Free Homes', with an embedded preliminary health economic evaluation and a qualitative analysis. The trial will be carried out in around 14 Islamic religious settings. Equal randomisation will be employed to allocate each cluster to a trial arm. The intervention group will be offered the Smoke Free Homes package (Smoke Free Homes: a resource for Muslim religious teachers), trained in its use, and will subsequently implement the package in their religious settings. The remaining clusters will not be offered the package until the completion of the study and will form the control group. At each cluster, we aim to recruit around 50 households with at least one adult resident who smokes tobacco and at least one child or a non-smoking adult. Households will complete a household survey and a non-smoking individual will provide a saliva sample which will be tested for cotinine. All participant outcomes will be measured before and after the intervention period in both arms of the trial. In addition, a purposive sample of participants and religious leaders/teachers will take part in interviews and focus groups.

DISCUSSION

The results of this pilot study will inform the protocol for a definitive trial.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN03035510.