Familias Fuertes

Familias Fuertes is a comprehensive training resource for a community-based organization to equip promotores de salud (promotores) with knowledge and skills to support a Latino family with a child coping with cancer. Children coping with cancer include children who have pediatric cancer or children who have a close family member (e.g., parent, sibling) with cancer. The Familias Fuertes training guide is bilingual English/Spanish and trains promotores across seven one-hour sessions.

After completing Familias Fuertes, promotores will have the following knowledge and skills.

The knowledge to:

Explain cancer in age-specific and culturally-appropriate ways.
Identify and explain available treatment options for cancer.
Explain possible treatment side-effects.
Understand the mental, physical, emotional, and cognitive abilities and issues of children coping with cancer.

The skills to:

Talk to children about what they are experiencing in an age-specific and culturally-appropriate manner.
Conduct a needs assessment of a child coping with cancer to determine the resources and support he or she needs.
Research available resources to support the child coping with cancer throughout diagnosis, treatment, and remission.
Liaise with the child’s school and related professionals (e.g., social worker) to arrange for continuing education in the event of absences from school.
Help parents and children talk openly and effectively about their feelings.
Discuss end-of-life or palliative care choices.
Help children resume their former lives after treatment.

Sessions

SESSION 1

Introductions

Session 1 helps facilitators set respectful ground rules for the Familias Fuertes training; allows participants to get to know each other and share past experiences on the topic; provides an introduction to working with children coping with cancer; lists child developmental stages and how to communicate with children at an age- and developmentally-appropriate level; and reviews key promotora attributes.

SESSION 2

Cancer and Its Impact on Children

Session 2 provides an overview of human anatomy, including organ names in Spanish and English; lists the basic facts about cancer; and concludes with a review of the emotional, physical, and social impact of cancer on children.

SESSION 3

Overcoming Barriers and Understanding Client Needs

Session 3 orients promotoras to the types of challenges their clients may experience; teaches promotoras to think about their clients’ cultural beliefs; provides an opportunity for promotoras to brainstorm ways to establish themselves in the community; and guides promotoras through a needs assessment to gauge the needs of their client.

SESSION 4

Resources for Children Coping with Cancer

Session 4 provides a review of common resources which children with cancer need and how to locate the resources; and helps promotoras gain the skills to assess the reliability of information they find before passing it along to their clients.

SESSION 5

Communicating with Children, Families, and Schools

Session 5 describes how a child’s comprehension of disease changes as he or she ages and the types of questions children may ask; provides tips for promotoras to encourage open communication among the child’s family; and teaches promotoras how to serve as a liaison with the child’s school on behalf of the family.

SESSION 6

Assistance during Treatment

Session 6 teaches promotoras how to familiarize themselves and their clients with the treatment center; provides an overview of clinical trials and how to find appropriate clinical trials for their clients, if necessary; and helps promotoras gain the skills to assess stress in their clients and encourage open discussion about death and dying.

SESSION 7

Remission and Beyond

Session 7 encourages promotoras to develop a plan to help a child coping with cancer through remission and resume his or her life; allows promotoras to reflect on the lessons learned during the program; and concludes with a short course evaluation and certificates of completion.