Reaching African American men: a qualitative analysis.

African American men are disproportionately affected by most illnesses and associated complications. These men are also less likely to participate in primary and secondary prevention interventions. Little is known about reaching them. The purpose of this study(1) was to explore factors associated with effectively reaching African American men. Ethnographic methods were used. Key and general informants from an urban Northeastern community were recruited for this study. The data revealed 3 major themes as essential to reaching African American men: a trusted and respected community member providing the outreach, a perceived safe and caring environment during outreach, and a perceived benefit from participating in the outreach. The findings from this study provided a foundation for designing community interventions that will increase participation among African American men. Future research efforts should focus on operationalizing these findings in the community.