Cultural adaptation of an evidence-based home visitation programme: Latino clients’ experiences of service delivery during implementation
| Published date | 09 December 2014 |
| Pages | 280-294 |
| Date | 09 December 2014 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JCS-06-2014-0030 |
| Author | Megan Finno-Velasquez,Danielle L. Fettes,Gregory A. Aarons,Michael S. Hurlburt |
| Subject Matter | Health & social care,Vulnerable groups,Children's services |
Cultural adaptation of an evidence-based
home visitation programme: Latino clients’
experiences of service delivery during
implementation
Megan Finno-Velasquez, Danielle L. Fettes, Gregory A. Aarons and Michael S. Hurlburt
Megan Finno-Velasquez is a
PhD Candidate, based at
School of Social Work,
University of Southern
California, Los Angeles,
California, USA.
Dr Danielle L. Fettes is a Project
Scientist, based at School of
Medicine, University of
California, San Diego, La Jolla,
California, USA.
Dr Gregory A. Aarons is based
at Department of Psychiatry,
University of California,
San Diego, La Jolla,
California, USA.
Dr Michael S. Hurlburt is an
Assistant Professor, based at
School of Social Work,
University of Southern
California, Los Angeles,
California, USA.
Abstract
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the experiences of Latino clients following a naturalistic
cultural adaptation made to SafeCare, an evidence-based home visiting intervention designed to address
specific linguistic and cultural issues affecting the Latino community during implementation in San Diego
County, California.
Design/methodology/approach – Hierarchical line ar models examined wh ether Latino clien ts
experienced differences in perceptions of SafeCare delivery, working relationship with the home visitor
and satisfaction with services when compared with non-Latino clients and whether language of service
delivery and provider-client ethnic match were related to Latino clients’ experiences of the intervention.
Findings – Overall, across several different dimensions, there was no decrement in experience with
SafeCare for Latino clients compared to non-Latino ones, implying that adaptations made locally
adequately engaged Latino and Spanish-speaking clients in services without compromising perceived
adherence to the programme model.
Research limitations/implications – Because this was a non-experimental study, conclusions
could not be drawn as to whether the locally adapted SafeCare would fare better in Latino client ratings
than SafeCare unadapted. However, the findings are important because they contradict concerns that
EBPs may not be relevant to diverse client groups, and support the idea that when adaptations are
made, it is possible to maintain adherence at the same level of adherence as when the programme is
delivered in its non-adapted form.
Originality/value – The study explicitly documents and generates knowledge around an organic
adaptation made in a community to an evidence-based intervention for a client group about whom there
has been documented concern regarding the relevance of and engagement in services.
Keywords Implementation, Latino, Adaptation, Cultural, EBP, SafeCare
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
The development of high-quality services that meet the needs of culturally diverse clients and
better understanding the relationship between culture – that is beliefs, attitudes, values and
practices of families from diverse origins – and maltreatment are ongoing priorities for child
welfare research (Institute of Medicine & National Research Council, 2013). Increasingly,
child welfare organisations turn to practices having established foundations of empirical
support, that is evidence-based practices (EBPs), to enhance the quality and effectiveness of
their services (Barth et al., 2005). In some cases, such practices have been found to be
culturally appropriate with different ethnic and cultural groups with little, if any, adaptation
PAGE 280
j
JOURNAL OF CHILDREN’S SERVICES
j
VOL. 9 NO. 4 2014, pp. 280-294, CEmerald Group Publishing Limited, ISSN 1746-6660 DOI 10.1108/JCS-06-2014-0030
To continue reading
Request your trial