The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA

Abstract #47118

Betty B. Daniels, RN, MN¹, Gayle W. Bentley, RN, MSN², and Saundra Turner, RN, EdD². (1) Community Nursing, Medical College of Georgia, 6933 Ayers Court, Atlanta, GA 30360-1302, 770-394-3412, bdaniels@mail.mcg.edu, (2) School of Nursing, Medical College of Georgia, 997 St. Sabastian Way, Augusta, GA 30912-4250

Teaching population focused care to nursing students continues to be one of the greatest challenges for educators. Application of the nursing process to the community as client is often overwhelming to students. Use of a web-based simulated community assessment enables students to practice population assessment skills in a virtual community prior to their “real world” assessment, thus giving them an opportunity to clarify questions early in the learning process. Organizing the simulated community assessment around public health core functions and the ten essential services of public health nursing allows students to be guided step-by-step through the assessment of and planning for a population’s health. The result is that students are more prepared for their encounters with agencies and communities where they plan to implement their community projects.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this presentation the participant will be able to

• Identify the advantages of providing students with a virtual experience in community assessment and planning.
• Recognize the importance of providing students with a step-by-step tool for assessing a population’s health.
• Develop ideas for implementation of community assessment simulations in public health education.

Keywords: Community Health Assessment, Public Health Nursing

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.