September 19, 2007
KDH Research & Communication launches the Informing Public Health research brief series to disseminate innovative, objective, and timely information to solve public health and other social issues.
The inaugural brief in this series is entitled “Mandates and Recommendations for Public Health Materials to Improve Health Literacy”, and it provides a systematic examination of the linkages between behavior change theories and cognitive development theories to inform the creation of public health materials for low literacy populations.
Research briefs in the Informing Public health series are available at the KDHRC website.
August 29, 2007
KDHRC presents research at CDC’s National Conference on Health Communication, Marketing, and Media in Atlanta, Georgia.
The CDC hosted their first annual conference to provide a scientific and professional forum for researchers and practitioners to share insights, research findings, and best practices to advance the fields of health communication, marketing, and media. KDHRC was invited to present two pieces of research at this high-level conference, entitled:
- Science education curriculum: Can it improve knowledge and attitudes about drugs of abuse?
- Linking cognitive development and behavior change theories in promoting health literacy
Working papers and briefs on this work are available at the KDHRC website.
July 7, 2007
KDHRC reaches Latino families with information about developmental disabilities.
In collaboration with the Organization for Autism Research, Fusion Multicultural, and Día de la Mujer Latina, KDHRC developed culturally specific communication tools to reach Latino families with information about developmental milestones and the warning signs of autism. Using a manual developed by KDHRC staff, the team held a training for 15 promotoras, or lay health workers, in Northwest Georgia in late July, 2007. Promotoras were provided with information and tools to disseminate through community health outreach programs. To date, the promotoras have reached more than 500 Latino families with culturally appropriate information on child development and autism. An evaluation of the promotora program is forthcoming.
June 16, 2007
KDHRC tapped to provide expert input on a new product for parents of a child with cleft lip and/or palate.
KDHRC has been asked to provide subject matter expertise on the development of a new health communication product entitled Facing Cleft: Encouraging Healthy Development. Funded by the National Institute on Craniofacial and Dental Research, this product will include a DVD and supplemental print materials for families of children with cleft lip or palate across the lifespan of the child.
May 9, 2007
KDHRC tests a new web-based game entitled Who wants to be a NIDA Neuroscientist? at the National Institutes of Health “Take your child to work” day.
KDHRC research staff attended events at the NIH campus to test a new interactive quiz game, developed for the National Institute on Drug Abuse, that provides middle school students with information on the brain, how drugs change the brain, and the work of neuroscientists studying this topic. More than 50 children in the target age range provided feedback on the game. KDHRC will use these comments to improve the design and interactivity of the product, and once KDHRC completes revisions to the game it will be available on the NIDA website.
April 12, 2007
New KDHRC research may help children with Tourette Syndrome succeed in their classrooms.
Kristen D. Holtz, President of KDHRC, conducted a study to examine the impact of a video-based intervention to increase children’s knowledge about and positive attitudes toward a peer with Tourette Syndrome. Tourette Syndrome, a neurological disorder characterized by verbal and motor tics, is a confusing and potentially stigmatizing disorder that effects school age children.
Because children with Tourette Syndrome are at risk for peer rejection, Kristen Holtz created a video-based intervention to provide classmates of a child with Tourette Syndrome accurate information about the disorder. The evaluation of this intervention suggests that the video can effectively increase knowledge, create positive attitudes, and improve behavioral intentions toward children with Tourette Syndrome by typical children in the classroom. A paper reporting the development and evaluation of this intervention is forthcoming in the Journal of Developmental and Physical Disabilities.
March 1, 2007
KDHRC awarded HubZone status
The HUBZone contracting program is an initiative of the Small Business Association to support businesses located in historically underutilized business zones. The federal government has set a goal that 3 percent of all procurements must come from HUBZone companies, and larger companies can receive HUBZone credit on their bid by including a qualified HUBZone company as a subcontractor. KDHRC’s HUBZone certification number is 25917. For more information on partnering with KDHRC on federal grants or contracts, contact Kristen D. Holtz.
January 24, 2007
KDHRC will support the National Institute on Drug Abuse’s community outreach for Brain Awareness Week.
Brain Awareness Week is an international event sponsored by the Dana Brain Alliance to increase public awareness of the progress and benefits of brain research. The National Institute on Drug Abuse is strongly involved in this event and reaches out to students in the Washington. D.C., area with games and activities during this week. KDHRC has been awarded a project to develop a web-based game that educates students about drugs, the brain and science; the game will be a cornerstone of NIDA’s outreach to this audience. Check back for updates on the progress of this game!
December 1, 2006
Corporation launched to provide creative solutions to public problems.
On December 1st, KDH Research and Communication opened its doors. KDH Research and Communication (KDHRC) is a woman-owned small business that provides social marketing, research and communication services to government and other customers. Our mission is to produce and disseminate high quality, objective and timely information that can be applied to public health and other social issues. KDHRC was formed by Dr. Kristen Holtz, a senior level public health practitioner and developmental psychologist with experience in the fields of social marketing, health communication and product development.
November 6, 2006
Holtz presents at American Public Health Association annual meeting.
At the 134th annual meeting of APHA in Boston, Massachusetts, Kristen D. Holtz presented a paper with results from an evaluation of a National Institute on Drug Abuse-funded science education curriculum for middle school students entitled “Development and evaluation of a science education approach to drug abuse prevention”.
Although preliminary, the results of this evaluation suggest that science education can be an effective method of substance abuse prevention. Students who were exposed to the curriculum on drugs and how drugs change the brain showed greater changes than their peers in knowledge and protective attitudes, particularly if they had more positive attitudes toward science at the outset of the evaluation. Holtz suggests that combining sound educational techniques with behavior change theory may have particular utility in delivering prevention messages to time-pressed classrooms.
This paper has been accepted for publication by the Journal of Drug Education.