Jaime Madrigano, BE, Department of Epidemiology, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey School of Public Health, 683 Hoes Lane West, Piscataway, NJ 08854, 908-518-0411, madrigja@umdnj.edu and Lisa A. Asare, MPH, Department of Health Systems and Policy, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey School of Public Health, Primary Care Center, Suite 243, 40 East Laurel Road, Stratford, NJ 08084.

In the spring of 2003 a student group at UMDNJ-School of Public Health was formed to engage in service projects with a public health focus. One of the first projects this group undertook was a partnership with a local transitional housing facility for women and children. A needs assessment demonstrated that asthma was a serious problem within this population and was leading to an excess in hospitalizations for the children. Approximately twenty public health students, in conjunction with faculty members, worked for several months to design a bi-lingual, educational workshop for this special population. The subject matter included environmental triggers and methods of control for asthma. The workshop incorporated a number of teaching methods including lecture, video, and interactive demonstrations for the mothers; and lecture and games for the children. Before the intervention a survey was administered to the mothers and children to assess knowledge of asthma triggers and control methods. The same instrument was used after the intervention to determine the effectiveness of the workshop. For the group of mothers (n=19), participants saw an average increase in total survey score of 9%. Results demonstrated improvement in over 60% of the questions. This project was a successful partnership that resulted in an invitation for ongoing collaboration with the facility. It also generated an interest among the broader student population in public health service opportunities. Lastly, the workshop will be modified based on the lessons learned during the first demonstration and conducted again in Camden, New Jersey this year.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the presentation, participants will be able to

• Identify the challenges in working with a population with unstable living conditions.
• Recognize the steps necessary to organize an effective volunteer health outreach project.
• Describe which educational methods were most effective with this population.

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.