Amigas Cuidandonos (Friends Caring for Ourselves)

Social support networks

Expand existing project, program, or initiative (expanding and continuing ongoing, successful work)

A cancer diagnosis affects far more than physical wellbeing. Cancer can eat away at patients’ mental health, rob them of their sense of self and sense of purpose, disrupt or worsen financial security, tear apart relationships, and leave patients feeling isolated and alone. For women, cancer often challenges the very core of their identities as wives, mothers, and the many other roles they hold in life. The toll cancer takes on women’s bodies and minds—the hair loss, mastectomies, the inability to have children, the overwhelming sense of loss, lack of power, and diminished control over life—often leave them feeling exceptionally vulnerable to emotional trauma as they realize they are no longer able to fulfill their own or cultural expectations. Despite these drastic life changes, many Latina cancer patients struggle with balancing self-care while caring for others.

WeSPARK’s comprehensive model of supportive care helps restore emotional wellbeing, alleviate physical pain, and provide healing and coping strategies to navigate the illness itself as well as side effects of treatment and non-medical challenges that cancer elicits. Most WeSPARK guests are women (79%) and almost half are from low-income households (45%). WeSPARK has developed culturally- and linguistically-appropriate services through the Amigas Cuidandonos project to help underserved Spanish-speaking patients overcome barriers to accessing supportive care and to provide them with culturally-sensitive assistance navigating health and insurance systems, practical tips for coping with life changes and physical pain, and encouragement from peers. Providing opportunities for Latinas diagnosed with cancer to connect with and support one another has been especially beneficial for guests who share cultural experiences that impact their feelings of being isolated and misunderstood as they battle cancer. Empowering Latinas to receive adequate support, share their feelings, build bonds in support groups, and develop practical knowledge and coping strategies gives them a healthier emotional balance and outlook, and, in turn, fosters wellbeing for their families during this journey.

The success of WeSPARK’s Amigas Cuidandonos project will change Los Angeles County by ensuring that fewer Latinas are coping with a cancer diagnosis and the effects of the disease in isolation and/or without supportive care and self-care. More Latinas will overcome cultural and language barriers that deter access to supportive care during a difficult time, and they will be able to thrive even in the midst of the harsh physical impact of both disease and treatment, emotional and relationship changes and challenges, and general uncertainty in their lives. The social network they build at WeSPARK often spills into other areas of their lives because of the strong bonds these women form against their common enemy of cancer. With additional funding, WeSPARK can expand outreach and education efforts, build more partnerships that help us reach underserved Latinas, and offer even more targeted programming.

In addition to monitoring service use, WeSPARK measures the impact of services via guest feedback using methods such as pre- and post-service assessments and surveys. Guests’ use of various services and their self-reported levels of improvement in mental and physical health, developing effective pain management and emotional coping strategies, ability to navigate medical care and make informed decisions, and general wellness indicators (e.g., better sleep patterns/less fatigue and nutritional intake) as well as overall satisfaction with services help inform program development and delivery. During the last fiscal year, WeSPARK achieved these successes:
75% of guests reported increased confidence in making treatment decisions and navigating care. 80% of guests reported improved ability to manage physical pain/symptoms.
80% of guests reported feeling less anxious and/or depressed.
85% of guests reported feeling less socially isolated as a result of WeSPARK’s services.