# ACCEPTANCE BASED COPING (ABACO) SKILLS DELIVERED BY PROMOTORES FOR HISPANIC/LATINO PATIENTS WITH T2DM

> **NIH NIH K23** · BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE · 2022 · $147,847

## Abstract

Project Summary/Abstract
Dr. Kathryn Kanzler is applying for a Mentored Patient-Oriented Research Career Development Award (K23).
This grant would provide intensive training and time to gain necessary skills and knowledge toward achieving
her long-term goal of being an independent clinical investigator of scalable behavioral treatments to reduce
health disparities and improve outcomes for patients with diabetes. Dr. Kanzler is a clinical health psychologist
with experience as a clinician-educator in the US Air Force. Building on a strong foundation, additional training
is sought in health disparities, clinical research and design, type 2 diabetes (T2DM), and dissemination and
implementation science. Proposed training will be accomplished with guidance of multidisciplinary mentors and
training advisors largely based at the University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio. Activities include
coursework, directed readings, seminars, workshops, and mentor meetings. The proposed study helps
address an urgent need for more interventions for the Hispanic/Latino diabetes population. Despite continued
biomedical advances, diabetes and related complications continue to take a higher toll in the Hispanic/Latino
community, where there is 40% greater likelihood of death compared to non-Hispanic whites. Avoidance
coping has emerged as a key factor in preventing optimal glycemic control, but interventions that address
avoidance coping, such as Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), are limited by language and cultural
barriers to care, as well as standard dissemination practices (e.g., ACT is usually provided by licensed
providers in specialty settings). Community health workers (“Promotores”) serving on primary care teams could
deliver key elements of ACT for diabetes, in addition to mitigating other barriers to self-management, such as
limited resources, language differences, and low health literacy. This task-shifting paradigm allows for
culturally-tailored and accessible care. Task-shifting core skills of ACT–Acceptance Based Coping (ABC)
skills—to supervised Promotores could provide accessible and culturally appropriate treatment in the preferred
language of patients. This study aims to develop an acceptable and feasible Promotores-delivered ABC
intervention program for Hispanics/Latinos using REP pre-conditions and pre-implementation steps, in (a)
qualitative and quantitative data from interviews and focus groups (Phase 1); and (b) repeated small-sample
beta-tests (Phase 2). The second aim, in preparation for a larger pragmatic trial, is to demonstrate feasibility in
a pilot randomized trial through: evaluating recruitment and retention; establishing methods of assessing
intervention fidelity and integrity; engaging multi-level stakeholders; and estimating the magnitude of potential
impact on selected mechanisms and outcomes. This line of research has potential to improve glycemic control
and quality of life for Hispanic/Latino patients with T2DM. ...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10695586
- **Project number:** 7K23DK123398-04
- **Recipient organization:** BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE
- **Principal Investigator:** Kathryn E. Kanzler
- **Activity code:** K23 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $147,847
- **Award type:** 7
- **Project period:** 2019-09-10 → 2025-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10695586

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10695586, ACCEPTANCE BASED COPING (ABACO) SKILLS DELIVERED BY PROMOTORES FOR HISPANIC/LATINO PATIENTS WITH T2DM (7K23DK123398-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-21 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10695586. Licensed CC0.

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