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

Abstract #60446

Shawn M. Kneipp, PhD, ARNP¹, Robert Bosarge, RN, BSN², Joan B. Castleman, RN, MS³, Joanne T Richard, ARNP, PhD¹, Nancy Tigar, RN, DrPH¹, Beatrice Ellis⁴, and Jean Munden, RN, BSN, MPH². (1) College of Nursing, University of Florida, PO Box 100187, Gainesville, FL 32610-0187, 352-392-9207, skneipp@nursing.ufl.edu, (2) Alachua County Health Department, 224 SE 24th Street, PO Box 1327, Gainesville, FL 32606, (3) Health Care Environments and Systems, University of Florida College of Nursing, Box 100187, Gainesville, FL 32610, (4) Northeast Neighborhood Watch, 316 NE 14th Street, Gainesville, FL 32641

The Each One Reach One Community Cardiovascular Health Program was funded through a Centers for Disease Control Preventive Health and Health Services Block Grant in Alachua County, Florida. Funding for the project requires that communities develop interventions based on Healthy People 2010 objectives for heart disease and stroke (12-2, 12-8, 12-12), diabetes (5-1), nutrition and obesity (19-1), physical fitness and activity (22-1), and adult tobacco use (27-1a). This paper will present the original ideas for developing and proposing the program, which represents an academic-community partnership between the University of Florida College of Nursing, the Alachua County Health Department, Gainesville Public Housing, the Gainesville Police Department, and local Neighborhood Watch groups. While there are multiple goals of the project, the two most prominent include: (1) reducing cardiovascular health disparities among adult residents in an underserved area of Gainesville, and (2) expanding public health nursing services at the neighborhood level. Other goals of the project include improving collaboration between university and health department staff, enhancing educational and research opportunities for baccalaureate nursing students in community health, and providing graduate student experiences as research assistants in program evaluation. Discussion will focus on the community’s active solicitation to bring public health nursing into disadvantaged neighborhoods. In addition, although behavioral and lifestyle factors are addressed in the project interventions, the importance of addressing social determinants of health in the program design and the unique opportunities that exist for academic-community partnership development will be presented.

Learning Objectives:

• Identify the two primary goals of the project as they relate to Healthy People 2010 objectives.
• Discuss the importance of community involvement at the inception of this project and other similar projects.
• Describe how behavioral, lifestyle, and social determinants of health are equally important to consider in relation to the success of the project.

Keywords: Community Collaboration, Health Disparities

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.