Danetta Sloan

Discipline: Social Worker

Funding awarded to: Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

United in Faith, Health, and Strength: Advancing the Development of Faith - Centered, Community-Based Advance Care Planning within African American Churches

Evidence suggest that there are disparities in palliative care use for African Americans (AA) due to lack of knowledge about palliative and end of life care services, and mistrust of the health care system. African Americans experience poor symptom management, increased illness related suffering, and significant use of hospital intensive care units at the end of life. Black churches are known to be a trusted organization in African American communities and a place for resources. This project presents a novel methodology of partnering with two Black churches in the Baltimore and Washington, DC metropolitan areas to develop and evaluate a faith-centered approach and advance care planning aid. With the support from Pastors of each church, we will engage with leaders and ministers to develop faith centered language to set the context of an advance directive, grounding the introduction to and directions for each question with faith principles. Ministry leaders will receive education on how to facilitate advance care planning education and conversations, ensuring church sustainability for the broader church and community. The outcomes of this study include 1) increased knowledge about palliative and end of life care in African American parishioners/ communities, 2) increased prevalence in advance care planning conversation with completed advance directives within families and 3) provide a culturally congruent advance directive that is adaptable to the broader faith community.

“My passion for developing, implementing, and evaluating community-based interventions as a means to reduce disparities in palliative and end of life care within Black Americans is rooted in my personal experiences throughout my youth and young adulthood. Where substantial evidence indicates the benefit and growth of palliative and hospice care, still, it does not reach all communities. There continues to be underutilization of hospice among Black Americans, with disparities in end of life care and poor symptom control at end of life. There is much work to be done to increase access and quality of care in this community. Throughout my future career, I envision extensive work to become a national voice of patients and family members to inform the health care community of ways to engage Black Americans. I will also work with the lay community (non-health care professionals) to increase awareness and oversee the development and implementation of faith-centered, self-sustaining palliative care and advance care planning education programs.”