Dr. Wong is a physician (internal medicine) with a Ph.D. in epidemiology, An Associate Adjunct Professor in the School of Nursing and the School of Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco.  Her program of research focuses on cardiovascular epidemiology and health services research examining health disparities, access to appropriate health services and health outcomes. In addition to understanding the communities’ perspectives, she has examined providers and institutional factors in providing, outreaching and disseminating health information and services. 

Dr. Wong has been the PI on a number of community based research studies over the past 15 years.  Most of Dr. Wong’s research has been in Asian immigrant communities in California.  Due to the multi-disciplinary nature of her research, Dr. Wong is currently serving in a leadership position on 3 national programs that address AAPI health concerns: a) Asian American Network for Cancer Awareness Research and Training (AANCART), a 5-year, 5-center project funded by the National Cancer Institute, aim to build infrastructure to increase cancer awareness, research and training among Asian Americans in four targeted regions (San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle and New York). Dr. Wong is currently a senior advisor on the project.  b). American Heart Association, Western Affiliates – Asian Pacific Islander Americans Task Force, initiated in 1985, the Task Force has sponsored educational activities, bilingual health conferences, development of television and radio public service announcements, and adaptation and translation of education materials in Asian communities throughout the Western States. Dr. Wong is the past Chair of the Task Force.  c). Federation of Chinese Americans and Chinese Canadians Medical Association, with more than 3000 members in North America, is committed to supporting research and educational activities to enhance the health of the Chinese population. Dr. Wong is a current member of the Research Committee. e). National Research Advisory Council at the Association of Asian Pacific Community Health Organizations (AAPCHO) aims to initiate strategies to raise awareness in communities and to assure representation in clinical trials and research studies.  Dr. Wong is a member of the national research advisory committee.

Relevant Work by Dr. Candice C. Wong           

Chinese Community Smoking Cessation Project

The goal of this clinical trial is to test the efficacy of a culturally and linguistically tailored physician directed, nurse managed, smoking cessation and relapse prevention among Chinese smokers in San Francisco Bay Area. At this time, the study has randomized 390 participants into either a self-help manual only condition or the intensive counseling condition.

Quality of Hypertension Care among Asian Refugees

Dr. Wong’s work in Asian refugee communities (e.g. Hmong) has documented the effects of culture on use of health services and the simultaneous or sequential use of traditional practice and modern health systems in seeking treatment. The project consisted of two parts. The qualitative component, including in-depth interviews with Hmong community leaders and focus groups with Hmong hypertensive patients, was conducted to identify dimensions of quality of care. Using a culturally tailored survey tool, 320 Hmong hypertensive patients were interviewed to assess their health services needs.

The Chinese Wellness Guide

Dr. Wong was the Editor-in-Chief on this 152-page features easy-to-read information in both Chinese and English and photos of people dealing with real-life situations, for non-English speaking, low-income Chinese immigrant families in California. The comprehensive resource section includes toll-free phone numbers, websites, and local organizations providing services to Chinese-speaking communities. The Guide includes sections on Everyday Life, Parents and Children and Staying Well.  Meticulous attention was paid to the participatory process of developing culturally and linguistically appropriate resource materials in partnership with leaders in the Chinese community involving an advisory committee, consultation with cultural experts on concepts and design, multiple levels of translation, feedback and review by key representatives of the cultural group, and focus group testing of format and content. The date, 100,000 guides has been successfully distributed in Chinese communities throughout California.

Ethnic and Gender Disparity in CVD Care

Dr. Wong evaluated influences of gender and race/ethnicity in the use of coronary procedures after acute myocardial infarction (AMI) among 16 Northern California HMO hospitals under one large health plan (382 Women and 783 Men). This study (a) compared the clinical indications used to refer patients for coronary angiography in an AMII cohort to recommended guidelines established by the American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology Task Force (AHA/ACC); (b) tested whether gender and race were independent criteria used to refer patients for coronary angiography, controlling for the effects of age, co-morbidity and severity of disease; and (c) compared one year post-MI mortality rate among individuals who received early diagnostic evaluation and therapeutic intervention and individuals who did not.