Abstract B012: Framing Sú’c Khóe là Hanh Phúc within the cultural adaptation process model: Adapting a cervical and breast cancer screening intervention for Vietnamese American women
Authors: Nguyen Frances M , Fernandez-Esquer Maria E , Le Yen-Chi , Chen Shane , Schick Vanessa R 
Published: September 2020

Background: Cultural adaptation is the process of adapting an intervention to meet the cultural needs (beliefs, values, practices) within the social and research context of a population. Vietnamese women in the U.S. have lower rates of adherence to Pap test and mammogram guidelines than any other racial or ethnic group, which may contribute to greater risk of cervical and breast cancer mortality. Adapting interventions to the cultural needs of this population may be key to increasing screening uptake. Methods: A Su Salud, a theory- and evidence-based cancer screening promotion program for Mexican Americans women was adapted for use among Vietnamese American women due to similar cultural values between both groups including personal modesty and familismo. The Cultural Adaptation Process (CAP) model, commonly used in psychology, consists of three distinct phases for cultural adaptation: 1) community collaboration and needs assessment, 2) initial program adaptation and testing, and 3) finalizing program iterations. This poster describes the process of culturally adapting A Su Salud to target Vietnamese American women, retrospectively applying the Cultural Adaptation Process (CAP) model. Results: Community collaboration and needs assessment were sought through a partnership with a community-based federally qualified health center which specialized in Asian American care and four focus groups with Vietnamese American women who worked at nail salons. Feedback on intervention components was also given by members of the research team, consisting of lay health workers, students, volunteers and researchers of Mexican and Vietnamese descent. Initial program adaptation to intervention materials such as the navigation guide, brochures, and the interviewer manuals, were guided by cultural adaptation practices used in A Su Salud, as well as through consultation with community partners and a needs assessment survey. The initial testing of resulting materials was then completed by research staff. Materials were amended as needed throughout the research process. The resulting intervention, Sú’c Khóe là Hanh Phúc (Vietnamese for “Health Is Happiness”) is a culturally adapted breast and cervical cancer prevention program that targeted Vietnamese American women who worked in nail salons in the Houston, Texas. Cultural beliefs and barriers identified as salient in the focus group discussions, such as modesty, unfamiliarity with the health care system, and desire for a Vietnamese provider, were incorporated into program materials, educational outreach, and navigation services. Conclusions: The CAP model is an appropriate framework for understanding the process of culturally adapting evidence-based interventions. Though CAP was not initially used in the adaptation process, it provides a framework to transfer valuable lessons learned in adapting cancer screening programs across seemingly different cultural populations.

Citation Format: Frances M Nguyen, Maria E Fernandez-Esquer, Yen-Chi Le, Shane Chen, Vanessa R Schick. Framing Sú’c Khóe là Hanh Phúc within the cultural adaptation process model: Adapting a cervical and breast cancer screening intervention for Vietnamese American women [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Twelfth AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2019 Sep 20-23; San Francisco, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2020;29(6 Suppl_2):Abstract nr B012.