Developing a Tailored Website for Promoting Awareness about Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) Among Blacks in Community-Based Settings

Rebecca Robbins, Yalini Senathirajah, Natasha J. Williams, Carly Hutchinson, David M. Rapoport, John P. Allegrante, Alwyn Cohall, April Rogers, Olugbenga Ogedegbe, Girardin Jean-Louis

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Blacks are at greater risk for lower sleep quality and higher risk for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) than other racial groups. In this study, we summarize the development of a tailored website including visuals, key messages, and video narratives, to promote awareness about sleep apnea among community-dwelling blacks. We utilized mixed methods, including in-depth interviews, usability-testing procedures, and brief surveys (n = 9, 55% female, 100% black, average age 38.5 years). Themes from the qualitative analysis illuminated varied knowledge regarding OSA symptoms and prevalent self-reported experience with sleep disturbance and OSA symptoms (e.g., snoring). On a scale from 1 (not at all) to 5 (very high), participants provided favorable ratings of website usefulness (mean = 4.9), user friendliness (mean = 4.9) and attractiveness (mean = 4.3). Our findings suggest although tailored health communication has potential for serving as a tool for advancing health equity, usability-testing of health materials is critical to ensure that culturally and linguistically tailored messages are acceptable and actionable in the intended population.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)567-575
Number of pages9
JournalHealth Communication
Volume34
Issue number5
DOIs
StatePublished - Apr 16 2019

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Health(social science)
  • Communication

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