The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA

Abstract #72821

Jessica Roberts, RN, BSN¹, Lydia Peaden, RN, BSN¹, and Joan B. Castleman, RN, MS². (1) College of Nursing, University of Florida, 4 East 32nd Street #110, Baltimore, MD 21218, 410-243-3910, jrober65@son.jhmi.edu, (2) Health Care Environments and Systems, University of Florida College of Nursing, Box 100187, Gainesville, FL 32610

A primary goal of the Each One Reach One of Alachua County project is to educate residents in a disadvantaged area about cardiovascular health and encourage “heart-healthy” habits. Another goal is to involve baccalaureate nursing students in all phases of the project during their community health clinical rotation. This paper describes student involvement in the project to develop a “user-friendly” presentation of general cardiovascular health and healthy behaviors to be implemented in an underserved community. A “user-friendly” model was adopted with the specific intent of having the content taught by community leaders who may or may not have existing knowledge of cardiovascular health. Having this information taught by community leaders was an important factor in not only the acceptability of the content, but also sustaining program goals beyond the grant period. Existing teaching tools on cardiovascular health were predominantly designed to be taught by a health care provider or professional. Thus, a major challenge was to develop a tool that could be taught essentially by anyone and tailoring it for use with a variety of audiences. The presentation addressed the following areas to provide an audience with general knowledge on cardiovascular health: heart functioning, cardiovascular disease, heart attack and stroke (including warning signs and when to take action), risk factors for cardiovascular disease, and behavioral modifications to decrease these risk factors. Involvement in this project enabled nursing students the experience necessary to independently develop and implement a community health teaching intervention in their future practice.

Learning Objectives:

Learning Objectives: 1) Recognize the methods, challenges and limitations involved in developing a “user-friendly” community health teaching tool/presentation.
• Identify the importance of involving community leaders to affect the longevity of a community health teaching tool.”
• List areas to include in a teaching tool in order to provide a general background on cardiovascular health.”

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.