A Purdue University professor has received a $1.5 million federal grant to use technology for reducing heart disease in the black population.

"The goal is to foster local information and technological capacities to take clinical information and turn it into meaningful forms tied to the local culture," said Moan Dutta, the professor leading the project who is working with the Lake County Minority Health Coalition, among other groups.

Using information about cholesterol as an example, Dutta explained how clinical guides designed for other physicians or expert audiences could be "turned into a product meaningful to the experiences of local communities."

"It's difficult to take complex results of clinical trials and translate those in a way that makes sense to people," said Purdue professor Bart Collins, who is working with Dutta on the project. "The goal is to tailor it for different populations."

This study will target the black community, which suffers from high rates of heart disease, Collins said.

"That's our initial target population," he said. "Heart disease has been a challenge for us to treat as effectively in that community, and I think this is an area of need."

The information also will be posted to a website and disbursed at face-to-face meetings.

Dutta said the meetings will ensure those without access to technology can participate in the exchange of ideas and information.

"The argument I'm making is that most communities that suffer health disparities or inequalities, it's not just because of not having access to right kind of information, but because they do not have access to those communication platforms where decisions about their lives are made," he said.

Dutta and Collins also have partnered with the Indiana Minority Health Coalition, Minority Health Coalition of Marion County, Purdue's Regenstrief Center for Healthcare Engineering and the American Hospital Association's Health Research and Educational Trust.