Cancer Prevention Program, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, (M3 - B232), 1100 Fairview Avenue North, Seattle, WA 98109, USA.
Can J Public Health. 2009 Nov-Dec;100(6):463-6. doi: 10.1007/BF03404345.
According to recent census data, 1,216,600 Canadians are of Chinese descent, and over 80% of Chinese Canadians are foreign born. Approximately 10% of Chinese immigrants are chronic carriers of hepatitis B, compared with less than 0.5% of the general population. English as a second language (ESL) classes provide ready access for individuals with limited English proficiency who are not reached by English language health education materials and media campaigns. We conducted a group-randomized trial to evaluate the effectiveness of a hepatitis B ESL educational curriculum for Chinese immigrants.
Five community-based organizations that provide ESL education in the greater Vancouver area participated in the study. Forty-one ESL classes (which included 325 Chinese students) were randomly assigned to experimental or control status. A follow-up survey, conducted six months after randomization, assessed knowledge about hepatitis B. Generalized estimating equations were used to analyze the data.
Follow-up surveys were completed by 298 (92%) of the students. At follow-up, experimental group students were significantly (p < 0.05) more likely than control group students to know that immigrants have higher hepatitis B infection rates than people who were born in Canada; hepatitis B can be spread during childbirth, during sexual intercourse and by sharing razors; hepatitis B is not spread by sharing eating utensils; and hepatitis B infection can cause cirrhosis and liver cancer.
Our findings indicate that ESL curricula can have a positive impact on health knowledge among Chinese immigrants with limited English. Future research should evaluate the effectiveness of ESL curricula for other immigrant groups, as well as other health topics.
根据最近的人口普查数据，有 121.66 万加拿大人是华裔，其中超过 80%的华裔是在加拿大境外出生的。大约 10%的中国移民是慢性乙型肝炎携带者，而普通人群中这一比例不到 0.5%。以英语为第二语言（ESL）课程为那些英语水平有限、无法接触到英语健康教育材料和媒体宣传的人提供了便捷的途径。我们进行了一项群组随机试验，以评估针对中国移民的乙型肝炎 ESL 教育课程的有效性。
大温哥华地区的五个提供 ESL 教育的社区组织参与了这项研究。41 个 ESL 班（包括 325 名中国学生）被随机分配到实验组或对照组。在随机分组后 6 个月进行的随访调查评估了他们对乙型肝炎的知识。采用广义估计方程分析数据。
有 298 名（92%）学生完成了随访调查。在随访时，实验组学生明显（p<0.05）比对照组学生更有可能知道移民的乙型肝炎感染率高于在加拿大出生的人；乙型肝炎可以在分娩、性接触和共用剃刀时传播；乙型肝炎不会通过共用餐具传播；乙型肝炎感染可导致肝硬化和肝癌。
我们的研究结果表明，ESL 课程可以对英语水平有限的中国移民的健康知识产生积极影响。未来的研究应该评估 ESL 课程对其他移民群体以及其他健康主题的有效性。
