Windshield Survey Reflection
Jessica O.
NUR/405 Healthy Communities: Theory and Practice
March 28th, 2016
Cynthia Januale

Community can be defined in many ways. According to Meriam Webster (n.d), there are 12 different ways that community can be defined. Community can best be defined as “a group of people who live in the same area (such as a city, town, or neighborhood)” ("Community," n.d). To most people, community is the area and people that surround the place they live and/or work. Community health is defined by Stanhope and Lancaster (2014) as “the meeting of collective needs through identification of problems and management of behaviors within the community itself and between the community and the larger society.” Community as client refers to the fact that the patient themselves is not always the only client. The community they live in and the resources available to them are also a part of the patient and the care that they need. Partnerships with different medical associations, community programs and other parts of the community as well as other people and citizens of the community are essential to the patient and their well-being. If there are no resources to help the patient’s needs, the patient becomes more at risk.

The participating family’s community (La Verne) appears to be a somewhat upscale neighborhood with small town feel and values. The city appears to be very involved in its’ citizens well-being and has their best interest in mind, especially the senior population. The city has a large senior population and the city caters to that. They even offer special seniors only classes and social groups at no cost and they have a special city shuttle that picks citizens up at a senior living facility and transports them upon reservation to wherever they need to go. The city was well maintained and a suitable living environment. The family that I picked was a family of 3, 2 of them being seniors, the other being there 27 year old granddaughter. The family was Caucasian which is what a majority of the citizens of the city are. This means that the family lives among people that it can relate to and feel familiar with the culture of their neighbors and friends.

The city has a wide spread population of people that are not Caucasian such as black Hispanic and Asian, but over 50% of the population was White. The city did not appear to be bias die to this overwhelming majority of White citizens, however it did not appear to be very diverse. There was definitely a large amount of senior citizens, who are definitely a vulnerable population. The city’s website even made mention of the fact that they have a large senior citizen population and recognized the special needs that they must accommodate to help these senior citizens.

Some of the aspects of the city that can affect the residents’ health include the promotion of well-being that the city and its’ citizens appear to have. So many people were out and about getting exercise and enjoying the outdoors. As previously mentioned, the city also offers many different exercise classes and activities for its’ citizens for a small fee and even offers free classes to its’ senior citizen population as well. Another thing about the city that can affect the citizen’s health is the warm weather and mild winters. Being in Southern California, the city of La Verne enjoys winters with little rain and mild winter temperatures, meaning no snow or freezing conditions. This makes it easier to be able to get out of the house and get around the city and also makes it more inviting to leave the house to exercise or perform outdoor activities. Being stuck inside a home all winter with lack of activity and social interaction can actually be detrimental to people’s health, especially vulnerable populations such as senior citizens. The citizens are also able to freely get outdoors and get exercise due to the safety and security of the city. Not only is it a low crime city, but the city has made many trails and bike lanes throughout the city to enable its’ citizens to enjoy all the beauty the city has to offer. Another aspect of the city that can affect residents’ health is the fact that it is the base of the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains. This can cause an increase in smog conditions because the smog tends to stack up against the mountains when there is not enough of an off-shore flow of wind to remove the smog. This can affect allergies, asthma and can also cause other respiratory problems.

Nutrition, physical activity and obesity is one of the Healthy People 2020 leading health indicators that is relevant to the community. As previously mentioned the city of La Verne offers a wide variety of exercise and outdoor activity opportunities such as community exercise classes, bike lanes and walking trails, as well as a safe environment for its’ citizens to be able to exercise outdoors. It also has gyms such as LA Fitness that provide an indoor workout area for its’ citizens. The city has many grocery stores with fresh produce as well as a fruit stand at the edge of town that offers fresh picked produce. The city also sponsors a weekly farmer’s market every Saturday morning for its’ citizens to purchase fresh fruits and vegetables.

References
Community. (n.d). In Merriam Webster. Retrieved from http://a group of people who live in the same area (such as a city, town, or neighborhood)
Stanhope, M., & Lancaster, J. (2014). Public health nursing (8th ed.). Retrieved from The
University of Phoenix eBook.