Public health nurses must advocate healthy public policy. The education of these nurses should include learning experiences such as analysis of population health issues, environmental scanning, letters to editors or legislators, and practicum activities that develop awareness of public policy. (SK)

Assessed an interactive, computer-mediated intervention to help smokeless tobacco users quit by providing a user-friendly, personalized approach that engaged clients in the quitting process. Participant evaluation indicated that at 6-week follow-up, most had made an attempt to quit, and 58 percent were able to quit for at least 24 hours. Responses…

Describes a new institute at West Virginia University that examines the roles of consciousness and thought in nonstressful living; some professors say it is promoting New Age bunk. (EV)

Assesses parents, students, and program leaders involved in an in-school drug prevention program for their perceptions of the efficacy of the program. Feedback indicated a very high program satisfaction level from respondents with parents indicating the highest level satisfaction. Areas for improvement included parent attendance; invitation…

Conducted focus groups with daily smokers to identify key themes and strategies that would be effective in influencing attitudinal and behavioral change in homes that allowed smoking to occur. Smokers preferred messages that addressed the health of children, respected smokers, were based on research, provided information and assistance on…

Describes a sexual education program that was aired by the campus radio station at Kansas State University. Use of college radio to promote student health issues is first reviewed. Specific program content and production obstacles are then discussed. Recommendations for future shows are made. (GCP)

The paper addresses the issue of student participation from the perspective of the health-promoting schools initiative. It draws on experience from the Macedonian Network of Health-Promoting Schools and its collaboration with the Danish as well as other country networks within the European Network of Health-Promoting Schools. Student participation…

Healthy campuses are critical so that students can learn and actively participate in shaping and maintaining a strong educational environment. This Viewpoint describes the commonalities between service learning, social justice, campus health, and the goals of Healthy Campus 2010, which was developed from the larger Healthy People 2010 objectives…

Restorative care attempts to break the cycle of dependency and functional decline in nursing homes by addressing individual resident needs. The Restorative Care Education and Training (RCET) Program consists of a five-week workshop and resource manual for both supervisory and direct care staff. This paper describes the RCET approach and presents…

Individuals with schizophrenia have a much higher prevalence of tobacco smoking, a lower cessation rate, and a higher incidence of tobacco-related diseases than the general population. The initial challenge has been to motivate these individuals to quit smoking. This study tested whether motivational interviewing is effective in motivating smokers…

The diversity of the older adult population is increasing, and health professionals need to learn new knowledge and skills to improve the adherence of older ethnic clients to their health recommendations. Much of the existing research literature on diversity in gerontology concludes that ethnic older adults are at a health disadvantage. Few if any…

As the North American HIV/AIDS epidemic enters its third decade, marginalized communities remain disproportionately vulnerable to HIV/AIDS. What contributions has adult education made so far--and how might it play an increased role in the future?

Some 600,000 children in the US are allergic to peanuts. Of 400 elementary school nurses, 44% cite increased food-allergic students in the past five years. Peanut allergy doubled in children from 1997 to 2002, and yet peanuts are only one of six foods most often causing allergic reactions in children, including milk, eggs, wheat, soy, and tree…

Physical education represents an area of the middle school curriculum that has the potential to impact adolescents' developing knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors in positive and meaningful ways that may endure across the lifespan. Despite the well-documented benefits of engaging in regular physical activity (e.g., American Heart…

This study examined the impact of tobacco possession laws on public smoking among youth. There were two intervention sites: a fast food restaurant and a shopping mall. Two control sites were also monitored for public smoking among youth. Preliminary findings suggest that when police issued tickets to minors for violating tobacco possession laws,…