By Andrea Zaldivar
Visionary funders are rallying behind an important new Lighthouse outreach program, East Harlem Early Action Saves Sight, which will be hitting the streets of East Harlem to prevent vision loss from diseases like diabetes that are more prevalent in this community. The incidence of diabetes is disproportionately higher (13%) in East Harlem than elsewhere in New York City -- and among the highest in the nation.
Thanks to the generosity of The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation, which pledged a $150,000 matching grant over two years, this innovative program is taking off. And thanks to those who followed the Foundation's lead and incentive -- the Genentech Foundation, IMPACT Diabetes Coalition and New York City Councilman Daniel Garodnick -- we exceeded our first-year matching goal.
A Pressing Public Health Need
East Harlem is an underserved community comprised mostly of Latino and African American residents, who are at a higher risk of diabetes than Caucasians. They are also at a significantly higher risk -- 40-50% -- for the potentially blinding, but preventable, vision impairment diabetes leaves in its wake. Many residents are low-income elderly who do not have access to quality health and vision care: 38% live below the poverty line and 10% are uninsured. Cultural beliefs and practices, fear of the healthcare system and transportation concerns pose additional obstacles.
The East Harlem Early Action Saves Sight program is designed to reduce disparities in access to care for this highly vulnerable population through vision education, screening and services provided in the community. It builds on our already successful Early Action Saves Sight core program, which was launched in 2006 to raise awareness of eye diseases among older adults by bringing information to them where they live. It underscores the importance of seeing a doctor as quickly as possible, should a vision problem arise, to speed diagnosis, treatment and minimize the chances of vision being irrevocably lost. A key element is follow-up with those at highest risk to encourage them to get eye exams.
Removing Barriers
The East Harlem initiative introduces critical new players to the outreach team: "patient navigators," who will identify the numerous cultural, social and economic barriers to vision care within the community -- and help residents overcome them to receive the critical services they need. This community-based, culturally sensitive approach has been successful in eliminating obstacles to screenings and treatment for people at high risk for cancer. Our program represents the first time the patient navigator model will be used by a vision-focused agency. With help from researchers in the Lighthouse Evaluation Unit, we will be able to study the effectiveness of patient navigators in improving access to eye care and, ultimately, share the results with other vision care organizations so they can replicate this innovative model elsewhere in high-risk communities.
Our Director of Geriatrics and Diabetes Services, Andrea Zaldivar, a nurse practitioner and certified diabetes educator who has worked in the East Harlem community, says, "We're excited to take the lead in the vision care field by hiring and training our first patient navigators. We're hoping to make this unique model a successful and permanent part of Lighthouse outreach efforts wherever education and low vision care are needed."
Our Dedicated Team
Strong community partnerships lie at the cornerstone of this program, and we're delighted to be working with a team that includes the East Harlem Diabetes Center of Excellence and its IMPACT Diabetes Coalition, Mount Sinai Hospital, North General Hospital and Senior Health Partners, along with numerous local, city and state organizations and agencies committed to addressing all aspects of the diabetes crisis facing East Harlem residents. Together with our funders, we are all hoping to have a dramatic and positive impact on the health and well-being of some of the most underserved New Yorkers.
