The American College of Rheumatology (ACR) seeks to educate Community Health Workers (CHW) through a training on lupus signs and symptoms, lupus racial and ethnic disparities, and lupus clinical trials. CHWs are trusted members of their diverse and multicultural communities, so this project aims to aid in building trust between their communities and healthcare systems. The training includes education on lupus awareness building, the impact of lupus on racial and ethnic minorities, and the dissemination of culturally and linguistically appropriate lupus education fact sheets for the African American, Hispanic/Latinx, and Asian American and Pacific Islander communities. This will help decrease the delay of diagnosis.

This program allows CHWs who work with clients in their community to engage in critical conversations about how they can best help their clients and their families if lupus is suspected. Additionally, handouts for community members are available in three languages: English, Spanish, Simplified Chinese, and Hmong. This year the project has been working with CHW organizations in Georgia, Hawai’i, Nevada, South Carolina and Arizona. Currently, we are recruiting the next cohort that will begin on Oct. 1, 2023. Please contact coin@rheumatology.org for more information.