Reaching out to Latinos

Health screenings a step to coverage

Cancer screenings will be offered Thursday in Framingham as part of the area debut of a program aimed at helping uninsured Brazilians and Latinos enroll in healthcare plans.

The Latino Health Insurance Program, founded in 2006, has enrolled more than 1,000 Massachusetts children and families in subsidized and unsubsidized healthcare plans, said Dr. Milagros Abreu, the program's director. The program, which is run by the Boston University School of Public Health and administered in East Boston, officially expanded to Boston's western suburbs in December, enrolling 200 families in health insurance programs. A $100,000 grant obtained by the MetroWest Community Health Care Foundation in April will help provide the program's services to area residents.

Part of the program's objective is to train bilingual and bicultural members of the community to serve as case managers, offering information to potential clients and helping them enroll in eligible programs, its director said.

"The program is expanding, and help from community leaders is an incentive for people to feel more comfortable that someone understands their culture," said Abreu, a postgraduate fellow at the BU School of Public Health.

A community meeting in Framingham in December drew more than 80 people, half of whom signed up for health insurance afterwards, according to Abreu.

The MetroWest foundation grant will be used to create educational workshops, train community leaders, enroll people in health plans and other services, and help people with screenings and follow-up care, Abreu said.

"We want to try to increase prevention efforts at all levels, and reduce emergency services and increase use of primary care," she said.

The Thursday event, which is being cosponsored by Framingham officials, will include skin- and prostate-cancer screenings conducted by the town's Board of Health. The open house will take place from 5 to 8 p.m. at the Framingham Civic League, 214 Concord St.

The screenings at the event will be handled by Kitty Mahoney, a Framingham public health nurse who noted that it is sometimes hard to reach members of the Brazilian and Latino communities.

"It will be great to impart that information, since we have a real hard time pulling them in," Mahoney said.

Cultural differences can cause barriers to healthcare, but the insurance program might serve as better outreach to Latinos, Mahoney said. "I am eager and excited to participate in what I hope will be a new approach to bringing the service to them," she said.

Immigrants often don't know about the resources available to them, said Maria Aparecida Gomes, a case manager being trained by the program.

Gomes said her church, Assembléia de Deus Bethesda in Framingham, will offer office hours on Mondays and Tuesdays starting on June 16. Five volunteers will be on hand to help people fill out health-insurance applications and provide information about other resources.

Gomes, who lives in Milford, said many undocumented Brazilians have American-born children who are entitled to certain government-funded programs, but don't know it. "I think this program will help a lot of people," she said.

The program has appealed to local churches to help inform residents about its services, according to Abreu. More than 22 church congregations have sent representatives to community meetings since work began in the area, she said.

The church plays an important role in helping the community, said Eduardo Mora, deacon of St. Mary's Parish in Waltham. Mora, who is also being trained as a case manager, said people from his congregation, which is largely Latino, have heard of the program through word-of-mouth and asked for help with health-related issues.

"Where do people go when they need help?" he said. "Even though the church is not involved with politics, people come here looking for help."

The church opened an immigration center that offers a number of services, including ESL classes and translation help. But after Thursday's open house, the center will also serve as a point of reference on how to apply for health insurance, Mora said.

The Latino Health Insurance Program open house runs from 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday at the Framingham Civic League, 214 Concord St. Call 617-638-6727 for more information.