Myna Hua

Knowledge, attitudes and behaviours of caregivers regarding children's exposure to environmental tobacco smoke among Arabic and Vietnamese-speaking communities in Sydney, Australia.

Objective. The aim of this study was to inform the design of a culturally appropriate health communication campaign addressing exposure of young children to Environmental Tobacco Smoke (ETS) in homes and cars, targeted at caregivers of children aged 0–6 years in the Arabic and Vietnamese-speaking communities in Sydney, Australia. Design. Nine focus groups (five Arabic and four Vietnamese) were conducted by qualified bilingual facilitators, recorded, transcribed, then translated and analysed qualitatively. Results. Results revealed concerning levels of knowledge, attitudes and behaviours regarding childrens exposure to ETS. A poor understanding existed regarding what constituted passive smoking and the severity and extent of harm that ETS has on children. Smoking attitudes and behaviours described were not always consistent with the concern expressed about childrens vulnerability to smoke. Initial changes in smoking patterns at home since the arrival of children were not always sustained. Despite awareness of the harm caused by smoking in the presence of their children, some caregivers continued to smoke in closed environments. Others felt it was sufficient protection to smoke in another room, with doors and/or windows open or by ensuring that visible smoke did not reach the child directly, whilst some smoked in the home or car only when children were not present. Smoking attitudes and behaviours in the presence of children were influenced by cultural and social norms associated with smoking. The desire to be sociable and hospitable often superseded concerns for childrens health. Conclusion. The findings suggest that an effective communication campaign focusing on ETS and children in the Arabic and Vietnamese-speaking communities in Sydney should attempt to address knowledge deficits regarding ETS, as well as tackling entrenched culturally related attitudes and behaviours associated with smoking which are strongly linked to sociability and hospitality.

Design and promotion of an outdoor gym for older adults: a collaborative project

Physical activity promotes health and well being across the life course and is pertinent to Australias ageing population. However, more than half of Australian adults are insufficiently active for good health, and this proportion increases with age.

Evaluation of a comprehensive tobacco control project targeting Arabic-speakers residing in south west Sydney, Australia

Tobacco control is a health promotion priority, but there is limited evidence on the effectiveness of campaigns targeting culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) populations. Being the largest population of non-English-speaking smokers residing in New South Wales (NSW), Australia, Arabic-speakers are a priority population for tobacco control. We report findings from baseline and post-intervention cross-sectional telephone surveys evaluating a comprehensive social marketing campaign (SMC) specifically targeting Arabic-speakers residing in south west Sydney, NSW. The project was associated with a decline in self-reported smoking prevalence from 26% at baseline to 20.7% at post (p < 0.05) and an increase in self-reported smoke-free households from 67.1% at baseline to 74.9% at post (p < 0.05). This paper contributes evidence that comprehensive SMCs targeting CALD populations can reduce smoking prevalence and influence smoking norms in CALD populations.

Outdoor gyms and older adults – acceptability, enablers and barriers: a survey of park users

Issue addressed Increasing the proportion of older adults meeting current recommendations for physical activity is important. This study aimed to determine the acceptability of outdoor gym use among older adults by assessing their outdoor gym use, intention to use, motivators, frequency and preference for use, and barriers and enablers to use. Methods Interviews were conducted with 438 consenting English speaking park users≥50 years after installation and promotion of an outdoor gym. Results Forty-two percent of older adults interviewed had used the outdoor gym. Outdoor gym users had a significantly higher proportion of local residents (χ2=10.43; P<0.01), were more frequent park users (χ2=8.75; P<0.01) and spoke a language other than English (χ2=15.44; P<0.0001) compared with general park users. Shade and different equipment types were the most cited enablers. Conclusions Outdoor gyms may be an acceptable form of physical activity for older adult park users. Installations should offer a variety of equipment types and shade. So what? Outdoor gyms are a potential equitable approach to engaging older adults in a variety of physical activity types. Social and physical benefits of outdoor gym use in high risk groups for physical inactivity should be explored.

Changes in smoke‐free home status in an immigrant Lebanese community in Sydney, Australia

The smoking prevalence among the Lebanese-born population in Sydney, Australia, has been reported as significantly higher than that in the general population (males 42% compared with 27%, and females 28% compared with 21%).1 Similarly, in 1998, only about one-third (36%) of Lebanese households were smokefree, compared with 72% in New South Wales (NSW).2 While there is known variation in smoking status in NSW by country of birth,3 it is unclear if rates of smoking in a particular non-English speaking community are influenced by national smoking cessation campaigns in English. There is some evidence of general effects, with smoking rates in English and nonEnglish speaking adolescents being highly correlated over time with relative funding of the Quit campaign during the 1980s and early 1990s.4 To monitor changes in smoking prevalence and smoke-free home status among the Sydney Lebanese-born population, telephone surveys were conducted in 1997 and 2001 respectively (in Arabic or English). The survey participants were randomly selected according to postcodes with a high proportion of people born in Lebanon and using typical Lebanese surnames identified in the electronic telephone directory.1 Eligible households were those with a member of the household aged 18 years and over born in Lebanon. One eligible person per household was randomly selected in both surveys. The 2001 survey sampling frame differed only from the previous survey by covering a wider geographic areas. There were 242 completed interviews in the 1997 survey and 342 completed interviews in the 2001 survey, with the response rates 74% and 82% respectively. The two samples did not significantly differ by demographic characteristics. In both surveys smoking status was assessed with the question: “Which of the following best describes your smoking status: I smoke daily, I smoke occasionally, I don’t smoke now but I used to, I have tried it a few times but never regularly, or I’ve never smoked?” Smoke-free home status was also assessed with the question: “Which of the following best describe your home situation: my home is smoke free, people occasionally smoke in the house, or people frequently smoke in the house?” Chi-square tests were used to compare proportions in determining the changes of smoking status and smoke-free home status between the two surveys. Compared with the 1997 survey, the proportion of smoke-free homes significantly increased by almost 10% in the 2001 survey (see Table 1). This was mainly due to the reduction of responses in the “people occasionally smoke in the house” category. There was also a reduction of smoking rates for both males and females (see Table 1). However, these changes were not statistically significant. This could probably be explained by the small sample size of the surveys, which have only enough power to detect a 15% change in smoking prevalence among the survey respondents. The change in individual smoking status is consistent with the results of the evaluation of the National Tobacco Campaign that demonstrated a 1.8% reduction in prevalence over 18 months in November 1998.5 Local tobacco control programs (including tobacco cessation and smoke-free homes messages6,7) may have added to the national campaign, but given their small budget could at best have only had a modest impact. Recall of the national program (48%) was more than twice as high (22%) as recall of the local Arabic cessation message, although recall of the local smoke-free homes campaign was good (53%).7 These data support the hypothesis that national campaigns (at least tobacco control campaigns) can have a positive impact on migrant communities.

Formative research to promote the Get Healthy Information and Coaching Service (GHS) in the Australian-Chinese community

The free, telephone-based Get Healthy Information and Coaching Service (GHS) has made sustained improvements in healthy behaviours and weight change in the Australian population, but there is poor uptake of the GHS by culturally and linguistically diverse communities. This formative research study explored the Australian-Chinese communitys awareness, perceptions and experiences of the GHS and their knowledge and cultural beliefs about healthy lifestyles. Conducted in Sydney, Australia, the research included 16 Chinese community-stakeholder interviews, a cross-sectional survey of 253 Chinese community members; and a review of Chinese participant GHS data. The study revealed poor uptake (<1%) and awareness (16%) of the GHS, but good intent (86%) to use it. The need for culturally appropriate and relevant information on healthy eating and physical activity was identified. Employment of a bilingual, bicultural coach, redesign and translation of written resources and targeted promotion in partnership with community organisations were recommended.