DISPARATE POPULATIONS
Developing a strategic plan to include addressing disparate populations requires you, and your coalition to think about your community and the data you’ve already collected. One way to think about disparate populations is to ask “who are we NOT reaching with our current tobacco prevention or tobacco cessation efforts?”
With your coalition, review the information in your Needs Assessment. Are any of your statistics notably “worse” for any demographic group in your community or notably “worse” when compared to state (or national) averages? For instance, your overall adult smokeless tobacco use rate might be 20%, but for men, age 18-29, your rate might be 33%. In this example, young men, 18-29, represent a disparate population, and efforts to reduce the smokeless tobacco rate amongst this particular population group (or disparate population) may be your focus.
Other common disparate populations include those at high-risk for tobacco use or those who have been historically underserved. So, children of smokers and those in groups that typically do not attend cessation programs would also be representative of disparate populations, as may be pregnant women who smoke, a particular race or culture which exists in your county and is pre-disposed to using tobacco at a hiher rate.
Although your county may have many disparate populations, it will be necessary for you to facilitate a conversation with your coalition to decide specifically which population(s) you will focus on in your strategic plan.
