South Asian HEHA Project: Key Learnings and Recommendations

South Asian HEHA Project:
Key Learnings and
Recommendations
Dr. Sherly Parackal
Presenting on behalf of the SA HEHA Project team
Dr. Amritha Sobrun-Maharaj, Dr. Janet Clinton,
Maggie Fung, Faith Mahony (University of Auckland)
Vishal Rishi and Pranav Jani (The Asian Network Inc
(TANI))

Project Details
• A locality based health promoting initiative
funded by ADHB
• Overall goal: to promote Healthy Eating and
Healthy Action
• Short term goal focusing on “learning”
• Medium term goal focusing on “change in
behaviour”
• Multiple methods were used to develop a
culturally appropriate health promoting
programme

Settings
Community
– Accessed through local schools
– Community groups
– Religious group
Food outlets
– Grocery stores
– Restaurants and Takeaways

Project report and Training manual
• Mt Roskill South Asian Healthy Eating Healthy
Action Project
• SA HEHA Project Report
• South Asian Healthy Eating Healthy Action
Training Manual
http://weightmanagement.hiirc.org.nz/page/290
80/mt-roskill-south-asian-healthy-eatinghealthy/?section=13895&contentType=250&tab
=166&__requestid=eec0ffdae0848c381845

Enablers: Providers perspective
• Partnership between the University and
Community
• Previous community linkages and networks
• Presence in the community
• Support from community and religious leaders
• Being South Asian

Barriers: Providers perspective
• Low turnout
• Lack of continuity in participation
• Lack of social cohesion
• Heterogeneity
– Language
– Religious beliefs
– Cultural values and attitudes towards health
• Readiness to change (mindset)
• The concept of volunteering is not established
• Pre-occupation with settlement issues

Enablers and Barriers:
participants’ perspective
Enablers
‣ Family and Social Support
‣ Family Attitudes
Barriers or Challenges
‣ Attitudes towards health
‣ Family Attitudes
‣ Time

Key learning’s from the providers’
perspective
‣ Settlement issues are more pertinent and
important to South Asians than health issues.
‣ New migrants consider themselves as
“healthy” due to “selection” for migration
status

Key learning’s from the providers’
perspective cont..
‣ Religious affiliation may be a key factor
that impacts on participation in health
promotion initiatives and diet related
behavioural change
‣ Some religious groups may be less receptive
to healthy eating messages because they
prefer to follow what their religion prescribes
for healthy eating

Key learning’s from the providers’
perspective cont..
‣ The South Asian community is heterogeneous;
hence a “one size fits all” approach to health
promotion does not work.
‣ Sustainability of the initiative is a key
component to ensure its continued positive
effect in promoting health among this
community.

Recommendations
‣ Health promotion efforts will need to include
health behaviour change models to support
transition from knowledge to healthy
behaviour
‣ Continue to develop and strengthen healthy
eating and healthy action messages in the SA
community

Recommendations cont..
‣ Health promotion efforts should be directed
towards increasing awareness among South
Asians of their genetic predisposition to
metabolic disorders and the fact that this risk
is compounded by the process of migration
‣ Health promotion initiatives may have to be
tailored to meet the specific needs of South
Asian subgroups to be effective.