“Connecting Students to Careers, and Communities to Better Health”

“The mission of the Area Health Education
Center’s program is to enhance access to quality health care, particularly primary and preventative care, by improving the supply and distribution of health care professionals through community and educational partnerships.”

WHAT IS CHSC?
The Collegiate Health Service Corps is a three tiered training program for undergraduate college students and provides placements in health based service learning projects.
Benefits of CHSC…
Undecided students likely to enter health fields.
Students build resumes with leadership and community service projects.
Students more likely to continue work with marginalized populations.

To prepare undergraduate students for service learning experience that provides health education and screenings to underserved populations.
To specifically target freshmen, undecided students, and those interested in health care fields in order to expose them to various health careers.

To build a bridge between medically underserved populations and students.
To have students provide outreach, education, health screenings and needs assessments.
To build relationships with essential community partners for collaborative efforts.

Curriculum Modules…
Eliminating Health Disparities
Professionalism and Ethics
Health Promotion and Health Education
Core Training … 4 hour highly interactive workshop,
25 hours of Service Learning, 2 hours of
Reflection
Intermediate Training … First Aid Certification, 25 hours of Service Learning, 2 hours of Reflection
Advanced Training … CPR Certification, 25 hours of
Service Learning, 2 hours of Reflection

“
Cultural competency is a set of attitudes, skills, behaviors and policies that enable organizations and staff to work effectively in cross-cultural situations.”
“It reflects the ability to acquire and use knowledge of health-related beliefs, attitudes and communication patterns of clients and their families ….to improve services, strengthen programs, increase community participation and close gaps in health status.”
(Lavisso-Mourney & Mackenzie, 1996, p.919)

“Outreach can be defined as an intentional process of building relationships in a community in order to facilitate access to information, education, services and support for addressing health concerns.”

BARRIERS TO GOOD HEALTH
Language
Cultural Norms
Cultural Factors:
Informal Healthcare
Minimal Health Literacy
Cultural factors may diminish likelihood to accept information provided
Lack of understanding of wellness

BARRIERS TO GOOD HEALTH
Literacy
Limited literacy in native language
Limited literacy for English speakers
Lack of health literacy
Living Conditions & Poverty
Legal status and distrust leads to “Fear of the System ”
Initial experience with health care system may have been uncomfortable and displeasing.
Desire for healthcare is counteracted by belief in inaccessibility to healthcare system.

Providing Material and Information that is
Culturally Relevant
Integrating culture into the health message and materials (i.e. nutrition and food options)
Assuring medical services will not threaten their legal status
Promoting “good health” is not just the absence of illness
Promoting the concept of primary care
Utilizing Interpreters

University of Connecticut School of
Medicine
MIGRANT FARM WORKER CLINICS
Six WCSU students participated in the clinics delivering health education completing
60 hours of combined service learning.
Yinnette Espinal became a lead coordinator and interpreter.
Students conducted screenings of blood pressure, blood glucose levels and pulse at the vitals station.

Facts about the Summer Clinics
Connecticut is host to nearly 20,000 Migrant
Farm Workers each year.
The migrant farm worker population represents some of the most economically disadvantaged people in the U.S. Three quarters of farm workers earn less that $10,000/year, and three out of five families have income below poverty level.
In 2008, free services were provided to over 500 migrant farm workers at 31 separate clinics. Of those clients, 242 were provided with counseling on hypertension, pre-diabetes and diabetes.

Osteoporosis & Arthritis
Cardiovascular Disease & Hypertension
Diabetes
Nutrition & Exercise
Cancer Prevention
Dental Care
Vision & Hearing
Emergency Preparedness
Tuberculosis & H1N1
STDs
Musculoskeletal Problems & Back Care
Lyme Disease & West Nile Virus
Pterygium & UVA/B Eye and Skin exposure

“The more involved I became with AHEC, the more I leaned about the issues of Latino health care. My interest has grown so much that I now will minor in Latino Studies and
Master in Public Health.”

“After volunteering at the farms for two semesters, I’ve come to realize that it’s important to learn Spanish, now I plan to minor in it.”

NUTRITION EDUCATION AT
PLANT GROUP FARM
“It helped me learn how to take a broad topic and pinpoint the more important parts to give people a greater understanding.”

BLOOD PRESSURE SCREENINGS
AT PLANT GROUP FARM
“It really opened me up to the issues that concern the world now and has made me want to volunteer and help out the community.”

“Professionally, this program helped me grow as a person in a more positive way, and besides it looking great on a resume, the program allowed me to focus on networking, to implement the use of Spanish language, and making new friends.”

DIABETES AND BMI EDUCATION
AT COVENANT SOUP KITCHEN
“ The soup kitchen was an eye opening experience and solidified my desire to become a doctor.”

“ I feel as though I gained a lot from this experience, both in my ability to communicate with people that I didn’t know, as well as learning the importance of health education as a preventative tool.”

“I have changed from someone with little experience working with this population to someone with a passion for the access to healthcare and information for the underserved.”

HEALTH LITERACY
CHILD DEVELOPMENT EDUCATION
“This has been one of the best experiences of my life, and I would not change it for anything.”

Currently there are 23 core trained service-learners
An Official CHSC Club has been established.
Brandon Litwin is the current President.
Many of the students are from the Danbury area.
Six regular volunteer sites established in the greater
Danbury area
Three Service Projects completed in 2008-2009

YMCA Children’s Center
Bethel Health Care (senior care)
The Homesteads of Newtown (senior care)
Hispanic Center of Danbury
Primetime House (psychiatric group home)
Federal Correctional Institute of Danbury

Youth Empowerment Conference April ’09:
Youth Reacting to AIDS Project
Sponsor: Interfaith AIDS Ministry
Medical Reserve Corps Training disaster relief & emergency triage
March 2009: Women’s Health Month

Biology, Biochemistry & Chemistry
Pre Health Professions: Occupational
Therapy, Physical Therapy, Nursing and
Physician Assistant, Medicine & Dental
Medicine
Community Health, Elementary Education,
Business Management, Psychology,
History and Communications

635 combined total service learning hours
Summer Participation in Migrant Farm
Worker Clinics of the UConn School of
Medicine summed 60 service learning hours.
An Official CHSC Club was established.
Work-study money is available for students who qualify.

CHSC service learning had an impact on…
90% of students believed their original perspective of population served had changed.
100% of students believed CHSC increased their ability to make a difference in the lives of those served.
100 % of students believed CHSC had an influence on their understanding of how poverty impacts health.
100% of students would recommend CHSC to a Friend.
70% of students are interested in taking a leadership position in the CHSC Student Group.

Increase West Conn Student Participation
Expand Service Learning Sites and Projects
Increase the total number of service learning hours and the number of Intermediate and Advanced
Trained Students
Participation in the Poster Presentations at the
November College Corps Symposium at the UCONN
School of Medicine
Succeed at Supporting West Conn Students in application to Health Professions Graduate Programs
Investigate Web-based training and the introduction of social networks to enhance the quality of participation and acceleration through the program

Northwestern Connecticut AHEC
Amy Riviere, Regional Coordinator
530 Middlebury Rd Suite 212 B
Middlebury CT, 06762
P: 203-758-1110
F: 203-758-1193
E: ariviere@nwctahec.org
www.nwctahec.org