Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #112477

Joyce Morris, PhD and Dave Wattenbarger, MS. Tobacco Use Prevention Service, Oklahoma State Department of Health, 1000 NE 10th St, Oklahoma City, OK 73117-1299, (405) 271-3619, JoyceMo@health.ok.gov

In 2001, the Oklahoma Legislature funded a program modeled after the Mississippi program to put school nurses into districts that previously had not had a full-time school nurse. Additional criteria included a high tobacco prevalence, high minority enrollment, and high low-income enrollment. These nurses were charged with developing and implementing a comprehensive tobacco control program.

The nurses have been provided training and technical assistance by the Tobacco Use Prevention Service at the Oklahoma State Department of Health. Training included the use of three research-based curricula and a school-based cessation program. Technical assistance has been provided as they advocated for "24/7" no-tobacco use policies and developed SWAT (Students Working Against Tobacco) teams. The nurses were encouraged to extend their tobacco prevention activities into the community.

To evaluate the program, the Oklahoma Youth Tobacco Survey was administered in the spring of 2001, 2002, and 2005. The survey was administered to all students in grades 6-12 who were present on the day of the survey. This paper will focus on the changes in attitudes and behaviors of the students in these schools.

Learning Objectives: By the end of this presentation attendees will be able to

• List types of tobacco typically used by students in small, rural schools
• Describe behavioral changes of students served by Oklahoma tobacco prevention school nurses
• Describe attitudinal changes of students served by Oklahoma tobacco prevention school nurses

Keywords: Tobacco Control, School-Based Programs

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.