Public health nursing and community collaboration efforts, the village that keeps urban seniors healthy

2007 to 2009, Keeping Seniors Healthy Initiative, sponsored through a grant by the Commonwealth to support senior adults at an urban Senior Community Center, day program. The grant provides its member's the benefit of having access to a part time consistent public health nurse to a public health nurse three days per week. The charge of the program was to provide support to senior adults to live safely and healthy in their homes. This program was offered at this senior center only during this two year period. The selected senior center where this program was offered was located in an urban low income area. As of 2006 there were 37,244 senior adults living in the area of the senior center day program, median income $9,000, population 98% African American, 80% Female with average age of 75 years. The public health nurse worked in collaboration with senior center staff and members, local schools of nursing, community groups along with neighboring and community health agencies to successfully complete the mission of the initiative. The public health nurse role was varied, educator, clinician, counselor and advocate, 1) provide health care consultations, health screenings, medication reviews, 2) collaborates with health care providers, 3) reviews, plans and implements health education, health promotion workshops and activities based on the input of the senior center membership, partners with health advisory board consisting of members from the senior center for direction, 5)form alliances with schools of nursing and other health care agencies such as the American Heart Association. The activities associated with the public health nurse provided senior adult members with tools for empowerment toward self-efficacy, decrease health disparities and increase members quality of life based on written and verbal documentation. The impact of this initiative is to provide senior adults with tools to promote a healthy lifestyle that will increase length of stay in their homes. This paper highlights the Keeping Seniors Healthy initiative, outreach strategies, outcomes and future recommendations for replication by other public health nurses and community based senior adult programs in all geographic settings.