Daniel Hernandez, MD: Determining the Educational Needs of Hispanic Patients with RA
“It’s very possible to reach the Hispanic community and to go above and beyond what is currently being done, which is very little in terms of supporting them and giving them the tools that they need to create to have a better quality of life."
Daniel Hernandez, MD, sat down to discuss his American College of Rheumatology Convergence 2022 presentation “Exploring Patient Journeys and Education Needs of Hispanic Individuals with Rheumatoid Arthritis.” Hernandez is the Director of Medical Affairs and Hispanic Outreach at Global Healthy Living Foundation/CreakyJoints.
When asked why there is so little research on Hispanic patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), Hernandez explained, “I think the simplest answer is because it's difficult. We always hear about the heterogeneity of the Hispanic population; there isn't a one size fits all. Therefore, it's very difficult to put resources aside to specifically target a cohort within the Hispanic population, or at least I think that's what the marketers think, which isn't the case. There are some very big, cultural, and significant things that we share as a Hispanic culture. And if you are able to identify those, you're able to gain the trust and also get into a place where you can properly research and identify the missing opportunities within this the Hispanic population.”
A mobile-first design approach was utilized to determine the impact of Spanish language for educational materials as 80% of Hispanic patients that visit CreakyJoints Español, an RA patient support website, use their phone to access the information.
“This study gave us the opportunity to create material with rheumatologists and Hispanic patients here in the United States,” Hernandez stated. “It’s very possible to reach this community and to go above and beyond what is currently being done, which is very little for this community in terms of supporting them and giving them the tools that they need to create to have a better quality of life. All you need is a little bit of knowledge, which we've gained, and we are willing to share it with anybody that is that is interested in reaching out to our Hispanic population with evidence-based information. What we've also seen is that it doesn't only have to be focused for the Hispanic population. As long as you utilize this methodology, you are able to use it for other communities [as well].”
