\u3cb\u3ePersonal Reflection:\u3c/b\u3e Reflections on a Family Health History Assignment for Undergraduate Public Health and Nursing Students

This personal reflection describes our experiences with incorporating the scholarship of teaching and learning and problem-based techniques to facilitate undergraduate student learning and their professional development in the health sciences. We created a family health history assignment to discuss key concepts in our courses, such as health disparities, culture, and cultural competency in patient, provider, and health care team interactions. In this essay we share how we were able to listen to students’ needs regarding the assignment and make improvements based on their feedback. This was an iterative process where we learned as much as our students by remaining flexible and receptive to students’ unique circumstances

Facilitating Undergraduate Learning through Community-Engaged Problem-Based Learning

We used problem-based or experiential learning in our undergraduate Health Policy course to examine food deserts via a health impact assessment (HIA) assignment. A HIA evaluates potential effects on population health before a policy/program is implemented, to improve health and reduce adverse outcomes. We investigated if the HIA assignment facilitated student learning using mixed-methods to descriptively analyze students’ pre-/post-test and peer group assessment surveys, guest lecture reflections, mid-semester evaluations, and HIA research paper reflections. Quantitatively, students’ pre-/post-test ratings of their learning decreased from positive to neutral Likert scale scores, but they rated their group work positively over time. Qualitatively, students learned from community speakers and their research about the challenges of health policy as a pluralistic process and solutions to reducing food insecurity. But, they needed more detailed instructions for their HIA assignment earlier in the semester

Co-teaching Two Interdisciplinary Courses in Higher Education

Academics are challenged to shift from traditional lecture models to accommodate rising student expectations, digital delivery platforms, and inclusive evidence-based classroom practices. As a solution, co-teaching can add value to undergraduate students’ and faculty’s learning and problem-solving skills. We investigated effective co-teaching practices in higher education and its impact on students’ learning outcomes. We analyzed co-teachers’, teaching assistants’, and students’ interview and focus group data and an external evaluator’s assessment of co-teaching classroom dynamics using thematic analysis; surveys on what co-teachers learned from teaching together; and students’ self-reported learning assessments with co-teaching using descriptive analysis in two undergraduate Introduction to Public Health and Health Policy courses. Co-teachers learned from one another in teaching styles, troubleshooting, collegiality, and shared goals to improve students’ learning outcomes. Given our limited student sample, students appreciated different co-teacher’s perspectives, more resources and instructor help, despite not always receiving a balanced biomedical perspective

Enhancing curriculum through service learning in the social determinants of health course

Service learning bridges classroom learning and community volunteerism and is anchored in the curriculum, classroom discussion, and community. We incorporated service learning projects (SLP) into three Social Determinants of Health courses (2008-2010) to promote: experiential learning; undergraduate scholarship; faculty career development through the scholarship of teaching and learning; and collaborative university-community research to reduce social inequalities in health. We examined whether SLP facilitated student learning of course concepts. We used mixed methods analyzing students’ (n=25) pre-/post-test surveys, research papers, and site supervisors’ (n=17) interviews. Despite positive survey ratings, results showed decreased student agreement about SLP facilitating student learning. Content analysis revealed specific student themes: finding SLP rewarding for future public health careers; aligning student interests with community-based organizations (CBOs)’ goals; and valuing interactive experiences with CBOs’ clients. Students gained beneficial career development skills with CBOs but needed better preparation for their SLP by increased discussion of their and CBOs’ expectations

Community-Engaged Research on Social Capital and Older Adults’ Health: Lessons Learned

Most adults in the United States prefer to age in their own homes and communities. However, many ageing-in-place models rely on expensive external services, negatively affecting access by lower socioeconomic status (SES) and other vulnerable groups. This article documents two pilot projects conducted by a community-academic partnership that examined associations between social capital, ageing in community, and health among older adults. The first project explored the association between social capital and health across community SES levels. The second project explored one type of social capital, timebanking, and its association with health. We highlight here our lessons learned from these community-engaged research (CER) projects: (1) Our partnership needed to improve our study design and data collection by enhancing our recruitment strategies, community site partnerships, survey instrument and data matching, and research team workload allocation issues. (2) We should have validated our instruments for use with older adults who had mild cognitive and visual impairments, acknowledged how community SES differences influenced our data collection, and included more research assistant support during our community meetings. (3) We would have benefited from protocol development for recording and responding to issues raised by participants. Our projects also led us to relational insights, such as reinforcing the need to foster clear communication across team members, involving community advisory boards earlier in the CER process, seeking network input on research strategies to meet older adults’ needs, and developing plans to sustain long-term relationships. We hope these lessons learned are useful to other community-engaged researchers

Personal Reflection: Reflections on a Family Health History Assignment for Undergraduate Public Health and Nursing Students

This personal reflection describes our experiences with incorporating the scholarship of teaching and learning and problem-based techniques to facilitate undergraduate student learning and their professional development in the health sciences. We created a family health history assignment to discuss key concepts in our courses, such as health disparities, culture, and cultural competency in patient, provider, and health care team interactions. In this essay we share how we were able to listen to students’ needs regarding the assignment and make improvements based on their feedback. This was an iterative process where we learned as much as our students by remaining flexible and receptive to students’ unique circumstances

Facilitating Undergraduate Learning through Community-Engaged Problem-Based Learning

We used problem-based or experiential learning in our undergraduate Health Policy course to examine food deserts via a health impact assessment (HIA) assignment. A HIA evaluates potential effects on population health before a policy/program is implemented, to improve health and reduce adverse outcomes. We investigated if the HIA assignment facilitated student learning using mixed-methods to descriptively analyze students’ pre-/post-test and peer group assessment surveys, guest lecture reflections, mid-semester evaluations, and HIA research paper reflections. Quantitatively, students’ pre-/post-test ratings of their learning decreased from positive to neutral Likert scale scores, but they rated their group work positively over time. Qualitatively, students learned from community speakers and their research about the challenges of health policy as a pluralistic process and solutions to reducing food insecurity. But, they needed more detailed instructions for their HIA assignment earlier in the semester

Improving the Neighborhood Environment for Urban Older Adults: Social Context and Self-Rated Health

Objective: By 2030, older adults will account for 20% of the U.S. population. Over 80% of older adults live in urban areas. This study examines associations between neighborhood environment and self-rated health (SRH) among urban older adults. Methods: We selected 217 individuals aged 65+ living in a deindustrialized Midwestern city who answered questions on the 2009 Speak to Your Health survey. The relationship between neighborhood environment and self-rated health (SRH) was analyzed using regression and GIS models. Neighborhood variables included social support and participation, perceived racism and crime. Additional models included actual crime indices to compare differences between perceived and actual crime. Results: Seniors who have poor SRH are 21% more likely to report fear of crime than seniors with excellent SRH (p = 0.01). Additional analyses revealed Black seniors are 7% less likely to participate in social activities (p = 0.005) and 4% more likely to report experiencing racism (p < 0.001). Discussion: Given the increasing numbers of older adults living in urban neighborhoods, studies such as this one are important for well-being among seniors. Mitigating environmental influences in the neighborhood which are associated with poor SRH may allow urban older adults to maintain health and reduce disability

Intersections of Adverse Childhood Experiences, Race and Ethnicity and Asthma Outcomes: Findings from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System

Racial and ethnic minority subpopulations experience a disproportionate burden of asthma and adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). These disparities result from systematic differences in risk exposure, opportunity access, and return on resources, but we know little about how accumulated differentials in ACEs may be associated with adult asthma by racial/ethnic groups. We used Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System data (N = 114,015) from 2009 through 2012 and logistic regression to examine the relationship between ACEs and adult asthma using an intersectional lens, investigating potential differences for women and men aged 18 and older across seven racial/ethnic groups. ACEs were significantly related to asthma, adjusting for race/ethnicity and other covariates. Compared to the reference group (Asians), asthma risk was significantly greater for Black/African American, American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN), White, and multiracial respondents. In sex-stratified interactional models, ACEs were significantly related to asthma among women. The relationship between ACEs and asthma was significantly weaker for Black/African American and AIAN women compared to the reference group (Asian women). The findings merit attention for the prevention and early detection of ACEs to mitigate long-term health disparities, supporting standardized screening and referrals in clinical settings, evidence-based prevention in communities, and the exploration of strategies to buffer the influence of adversities in health