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PHILADELPHIA, June 24, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ - A University of Pennsylvania study will determine if public transit can convey
more than people going from point A to point B. Video displays on public buses
in Los Angeles will be used to help determine the efficacy of an innovative
soap opera-like video program designed to increase HIV testing among
low-income African Americans 14 to 24 years of age.
The program - "Reality Check" - will be shown on video monitors on public buses over a 27-week time-frame. Each episode of "Reality Check" explores
relationships and decision-making among a group of young African Americans. The
episodes carry an underlying message to get tested for HIV.
Each three-minute episode of the show will display for
one week on buses on a Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Back episodes will
be available on a YouTube link from the transit company website.
"Developing age- and culturally appropriate interventions
to promote a healthier lifestyle among this population is paramount to their survival
and to the health of their sex partners," explains co-investigator Christopher
Coleman, associate professor at the University of Pennsylvania School of
Nursing. "This is a study that could yield a wide-reaching, cost
effective intervention."
The primary investigator for the study is Professor John B. Jemmott
III from Penn's Perelman School of Medicine and Annenberg School for Communication.
Other co-investigators are Penn alumni Robin Stevens and Julie Cederbaum;
Scarlett Bellamy, associate professor in Penn's Center for Clinical
Epidemiology and Biostatistics; and Ann O'Leary, from the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta. The study is
funded by a research grant from the National Institute of Mental Health.
Cross-sectional anonymous bus stop surveys of African American youth
ages 14-24 who ride the bus through- and reside in- designated impoverished areas
at least three times each will be conducted before "Reality Check" is shown in
Los Angeles, immediately after it is shown, and three and six months after it
is shown. The study sample will include 200 youth who exit buses in each of
the two cities at each of the four assessment points, for a total of 1,600
participants.
The University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing is one of the
premier research institutions in nursing, producing new knowledge in
geriatrics, pediatrics, oncology, quality-of-life choices, and
other areas. Researchers here consistently receive more
research funding from the National Institutes of
Health than any other private nursing school,
and many Master's programs are ranked first
in the country. This year, faculty,
students, alumni, and staff celebrate 125 years of nursing at Penn.
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Contact:
Joy McIntyre
Director of Communications
University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing
215.898.5074
joymc@nursing.upenn.edu
Reproduced with permission - "University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing"
University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing
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