Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Hepatitis B Study at the National Institutes of Health

Researchers at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) are conducting a study on hepatitis B. The goal of the study is to:
-describe the natural history of hepatitis B (HBV) infection
-evaluate changes in HBV infection status in individuals
-identify participants who are potential candidates for one of the treatment studies to be conducted

Who can enroll?
- Individuals at least 18 years of age who have been diagnosed with hepatitis B.

What will be collected in the study?
- Participants will be screened with a physical examination and medical history. Health information will be collected through questionnaires and surveys on health behaviors, and family history of liver disease. Participants will also provide blood samples, and those who have had a liver biopsy within the past 2 years or have one during the course of the study will provide biopsy material for further study.

For more information about the study, check out the links below:
-Flyer
-NIH Clinical Research Studies

Monday, February 27, 2012

Health Promoter Training - Public Health 101

On Thursday, February 23, AAHI's Health Promoters met for a training entitled Public Health 101. Dr. Harry Kwon, immediate past chair of the AAHI Steering Committee, led an overview of public health concepts. He covered various topics, including levels of prevention, health promotion using community health workers, and behavior change theories. It was great to learn from Dr. Kwon and be reminded of the important role our Health Promoters play in public health. If you're wondering "what is public health?", check out this video.
02-23-12 Health Promoter Training: Public Health 101


Also, Dr. Kwon recently interviewed Dr. Howard Koh, Assistant Secretary for Health for the Department of Health and Human Services, on Cancer and the Asian American and Pacific Islander Community. If you're interested in learning about cancer disparities among Asian Americans, you can watch the video interview here.

Friday, February 17, 2012

Heart Health Screening event & SMASH B Results

It was a busy weekend for AAHI! On Saturday, February 11, AAHI participated in the 5th Annual Heart Health Screening & Education Event. The African American Health Program and the Holy Cross Hospital Community Health Department celebrated Heart Health Month by hosting this event where participants received free screenings for blood pressure, glucose, cholesterol, oral cancer, glaucoma, and vision. AAHI displayed its information table of health topics and resources available to the community in multiple languages and used the wheel of health education to educate people about breast cancer.
02-11-12 HCH Heart Health Screening


Then on Sunday, February 12, AAHI supported Viet Nam Medical Assistance Program (VNMAP) at the Screening, Management, Awareness, and Solutions to Hepatitis B (SMASH B) Results & Vaccination event. Participants from the SMASH B Screening event in January were invited back to receive their screening results and given the option of starting the Hepatitis B vaccine. There was also a short, educational presentation where Dr. Loc Le explained the general interpretation of Hepatitis B screening results and Nguyen Nguyen outlined the vaccination process and treatment referrals. AAHI also setup an outreach table to educate participants on various health topics as well as on local resources while they waited to receive their result.
02-12-12 SMASH B Results and Vax #1

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Welcome new staff and interns!

AAHI community,

We're excited to introduce our new program coordinator and Spring interns! Wana Jin started on February 6 as the Program Coordinator for Health Education and Communication. Jennifer Chang is a senior at University of Maryland College Park and Yu Ting Chen is a senior at University of Maryland Shady Grove.

Please join us in welcoming them to the AAHI community! You can get to know them a little better by reading their introductions, and hopefully you'll get a chance to meet them at one of our upcoming events.


Hi, my name is Wana Jin. I am excited to join AAHI's staff as the new Program Coordinator for Health Education. Prior to joining AAHI, I received my MPH from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. I also worked there for several years as a research coordinator for clinical trials. I look forward to working in the community and helping to improve the health of Asian Americans in Montgomery County. And as a native of Baltimore County, I'd love your input on things to see/do/eat in MoCo!


My name is Jennifer Chang. I am a senior expecting to graduate in May 2012 with a Bachelor of Science in Community Health from the University of Maryland, College Park. As an intern at AAHI, I am looking forward to interacting and providing health education to the Asian American community while improving on my communication skills. Also, I am excited to gain real experience in the field and see actual projects in action. The area of research that I am most interested in is mental health issues affecting Asian Americans. In the future, I would like to attend nursing school or work in the public health field.


My name is Yu Ting Chen. I am currently working on my Bachelors degree in Public Health at the University of Maryland. I am expecting to graduate in December of this year. While interning at AAHI, I am looking forward to gain more experience in doing outreach. In addition, I would like to learn strategies to get the community interested in learning about health topics and participate at our events. My area of interest would be cancer because three of my family members have died of cancer. Although cancer is fatal, most often times, it is preventable. In the future, I want to go to Dental School. I realize that many people do not know the importance of maintaining healthy teeth. It is not just for good appearance. Unhealthy teeth can lead to many diseases in other parts of the body. Therefore, I want to learn more about this topic and be able to educate and treat my patients in the future.

Friday, February 10, 2012

Recap of Past Events

AAHI community,

Sorry we haven't been able to update the blog very much in the past couple weeks, but we're back! Look out for some more posts in the next few weeks about our new staff and more big events. For now, here's a recap of the events we've had in the past couple of weeks.

Chinese Cultural & Community Servi​ce Center (CCACC) Community Service Fair
On Sunday, January 29, AAHI participated in CCACC's Community Service Fair at Lakeforest Mall. Various community organizations were present to share information about their services with the community. AAHI shared information on various health topics such as cancer, diabetes, osteoporosis, and hepatitis B, and used the wheel of health to educate people about breast cancer.
01-29-12 CCACC Community Service Fair


Osteoporosis Lectures
During the first week of February, AAHI visited two Housing Opportunities Commission (HOC) senior housing complexes to educate the elderly, Chinese speaking residents about osteoporosis. Health Promoters gave a lecture covering basic facts about osteoporosis screening and prevention, as well as fall prevention. Other health resources were also provided at AAHI's outreach table.
02-02-12 Elizabeth House Osteo Lecture

02-09-12 Waverly House Osteo Lecture