Institutionalizing social support through the church and into the community.

The positive influence of social support on such health related outcomes as patient adherence to medical regimens and stress reduction at the worksite has captured the attention of public health researchers and practitioners alike. Yet, the broader social outcome of building community competency to undertake and sustain health related solutions without constant intervention from professionals still remains elusive. The difficulty may lie with the need to uncover on each occasion the various roles and functions of social support structures that may or may not exist in a given community. The intent would then be to graft an intervention onto these existing roles and functions in order to mirror the naturally occurring social support structures. A conceptual framework that has been used to institutionalize health related activities through the role and function of the black Church, as a social unit of identity and solution for rural black communities in North Carolina, is put forth for consideration.