Native Hawaiians experience disproportionate rates of cancer incidence and mortality both nationally and in their homeland. ‘Imi Hale is a 10-year project funded by the National Cancer Institute aimed at reducing the burden of cancer among Native Hawaiians.
The overall goal of this project is to reduce cancer incidence and mortality among Native Hawaiians by maintaining and expanding `Imi Hale - Native Hawaiian Cancer Network, an infrastructure that:
1) promotes cancer awareness with Native Hawaiian communities;
2) provides research education and training to increase cancer prevention and control research by Native Hawaiian researchers; and
3) facilitates application of evidence-based information for reducing cancer health disparities through policy development and implementation, and translatin of data into cancer prevention and control practice.
Our objectives are to:
- Provide a core organizational infrastructure.
- Increase utilization of beneficial interventions to reduce disparities.
- Increase the number of Native Hawaiians in community-based research to reduce cancer health disparities through recruitment, training, and mentorship.
- Develop and Increase cancer disparities research that focuses on the spectrum of reserach issues necessary to reduce cancer health disparities, with emphasis on interventions that can be used in and by Native Hawaiian communities.
- Provide evidence-based information for reducing cancer health disparities to decision and policy makers at the community, local, state, and federal levels.
The work of ‘Imi Hale is based in Diffusion of Innovation theory and on the principles of CBPR (Community-Based Participatory Research) emphasizing community involvement, capacity building, respect for cultural values and the sharing of information.
Last Updated Pepeuali 1, 2006.