Running head: COMMUNITY HEALTH AND POPULATION - FOCUSED NURSING
PRACTICUM 1
Community Health and Population - Focused Nursing Practicum
Name:
Course:
Institution:
,COMMUNITY HEALTH AND POPULATION - FOCUSED NURSING PRACTICUM 2
Introduction
Every community bears it unique characteristics in relation to health status. This is something
that is shaped by a myriad of factors ranging social, economic to cultural. The community is a
vital client of the healthcare system and provides a platform through which the overall societal
health can be enhanced through community-focused health promotion interventions. The
community is fragmented along different demographic variables and each of these segments may
present it unique health needs and characteristics. For a health promotion intervention to meet its
intended purposes, healthcare providers, notably, the nurses have a primary role in interacting
with the different community demographical segments, assess their interaction with the health
services, identify points of weaknesses and subsequently employ such data and knowledge/skills
to come up with an evidence-based approach to address the identified health threats or
weaknesses (Kemppainen, Tossavainen & Turunen, 2013). Nurses possess valuable community
assessment skills as well as tools such as windshield surveys to gain an in-depth picture of how
communities interact with healthcare. Apart from that nurses form a vital link between the
community the larger healthcare system in the sense that they interact with the community on a
broader scale that any other group of healthcare professions. As such, the purpose of this paper is
to conduct an assessment of the Prince George’s County in Maryland, identify the existing health
groups and their weaknesses and after that, develop a health promotion plan to address the
identified health issue.
B. Assessment
1. Description of the community
, COMMUNITY HEALTH AND POPULATION - FOCUSED NURSING PRACTICUM 3
The fieldwork was based in Prince George’s County, one of the most populous and
largest counties within the state of Maryland. The county covers an estimated area of about 1,290
square kilometers. The county borders Montgomery County on the western part and borders with
Calvert and Howard counties on the eastern region
According to a census carried out in 2010, the total population of the county was 863,420
residents. As such, the county is ranked second with regard to population density within the state
of Maryland, and most of the residents are African-Americans. With regard to the racial
composition, the county comprises of about 64.5%African-Americans, 19.2% Whites, 14.9
Hispanics and 4.1% Asians. The other racial groups in the county include; American-Indians, and
Pacific Islanders. Although, the Prince George’s County is predominantly Black, the county has
witnessed a significant increase in the other racial groups such as the Hispanics in the recent
years mainly due to immigration making it more diverse.
Based on the 2010 census report, Prince George’s County has 304,042 household, and
about 36.8% of these households has children below eighteen years of age. In addition, about
40.1% of the households comprised of married couples, 20.4% were headed by females while
26.1% of the households comprised of individuals. Generally, the average household and family
size within the county was 2.78 and 3.31 individuals, and the median age of the residents was
34.9 years. On the other hand, the household’s median income was estimated at $71,260 while
the family’s median income was estimated at $82,580. However, males had a higher income as
compared to females. Approximately 7.9% of the entire population and 5.0% of the families in
the county live below the federal poverty line with the older adults comprising about 6.7% of this
population. The county has various educational institutions including colleges as well as
universities, and a substantial number of the residents are literate. In regard to this, about 86.2%
PRACTICUM 1
Community Health and Population - Focused Nursing Practicum
Name:
Course:
Institution:
,COMMUNITY HEALTH AND POPULATION - FOCUSED NURSING PRACTICUM 2
Introduction
Every community bears it unique characteristics in relation to health status. This is something
that is shaped by a myriad of factors ranging social, economic to cultural. The community is a
vital client of the healthcare system and provides a platform through which the overall societal
health can be enhanced through community-focused health promotion interventions. The
community is fragmented along different demographic variables and each of these segments may
present it unique health needs and characteristics. For a health promotion intervention to meet its
intended purposes, healthcare providers, notably, the nurses have a primary role in interacting
with the different community demographical segments, assess their interaction with the health
services, identify points of weaknesses and subsequently employ such data and knowledge/skills
to come up with an evidence-based approach to address the identified health threats or
weaknesses (Kemppainen, Tossavainen & Turunen, 2013). Nurses possess valuable community
assessment skills as well as tools such as windshield surveys to gain an in-depth picture of how
communities interact with healthcare. Apart from that nurses form a vital link between the
community the larger healthcare system in the sense that they interact with the community on a
broader scale that any other group of healthcare professions. As such, the purpose of this paper is
to conduct an assessment of the Prince George’s County in Maryland, identify the existing health
groups and their weaknesses and after that, develop a health promotion plan to address the
identified health issue.
B. Assessment
1. Description of the community
, COMMUNITY HEALTH AND POPULATION - FOCUSED NURSING PRACTICUM 3
The fieldwork was based in Prince George’s County, one of the most populous and
largest counties within the state of Maryland. The county covers an estimated area of about 1,290
square kilometers. The county borders Montgomery County on the western part and borders with
Calvert and Howard counties on the eastern region
According to a census carried out in 2010, the total population of the county was 863,420
residents. As such, the county is ranked second with regard to population density within the state
of Maryland, and most of the residents are African-Americans. With regard to the racial
composition, the county comprises of about 64.5%African-Americans, 19.2% Whites, 14.9
Hispanics and 4.1% Asians. The other racial groups in the county include; American-Indians, and
Pacific Islanders. Although, the Prince George’s County is predominantly Black, the county has
witnessed a significant increase in the other racial groups such as the Hispanics in the recent
years mainly due to immigration making it more diverse.
Based on the 2010 census report, Prince George’s County has 304,042 household, and
about 36.8% of these households has children below eighteen years of age. In addition, about
40.1% of the households comprised of married couples, 20.4% were headed by females while
26.1% of the households comprised of individuals. Generally, the average household and family
size within the county was 2.78 and 3.31 individuals, and the median age of the residents was
34.9 years. On the other hand, the household’s median income was estimated at $71,260 while
the family’s median income was estimated at $82,580. However, males had a higher income as
compared to females. Approximately 7.9% of the entire population and 5.0% of the families in
the county live below the federal poverty line with the older adults comprising about 6.7% of this
population. The county has various educational institutions including colleges as well as
universities, and a substantial number of the residents are literate. In regard to this, about 86.2%
