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Scholars of Change Discussion

Scholars of Change Discussion

Scholars of Change Discussion

As noted in the Learning Resources this week, health professionals can be leaders of social change. Consider the story of Paul Amigh, a student and teaching assistant at Walden:

My name is Paul Amigh (pronounced Ah-me’), and I am a student in the PhD Public Health program at Walden University with a concentration in Epidemiology and a Teaching Assistant for the School of Health Sciences bachelor’s degree programs. I have obtained my entire college experience from Walden University, and it has changed my life and given me the desire to change the lives of others.

I am a U.S. Army veteran who graduated from the Academy of Health Sciences, attended vocational school in Central PA for my L.P.N. license, and hold a BS in Public Health with a concentration in Health Informatics from Walden University. I have spent my life in service of my country and others working as medic, a prison nurse, travel nurse, and as a charge nurse in an advanced Alzheimer’s unit.

Feeling a greater need to do more for my community and improve the lives of others, it was my bachelor’s degree from Walden University that gave me the opportunity to work in education. I began teaching medical assisting, medical billing and coding, and health informatics classes at a local technical school in Central Pennsylvania, but I still felt I could do more. Scholars of Change Discussion

I created a local chapter of SkillsUSA and began to train students in leadership and skills competitions related to their chosen vocational career path. It was here I discovered students just need someone to believe in them. Spending a few hours each day training and working with these students to improve upon the soft skills employers are looking for in communication, conflict resolution, critical thinking, and fundraising the entire cost of membership and travel, I created Champions at Work. Over the last six years, I have personally trained and mentored more than 50 Pennsylvania State Gold Medalists and trained fifteen National Medalists, with five of them becoming national champions! Scholars of Change Discussion

This October I stepped down from teaching and have been appointed as the new Public Health Program Administrator of Western Pennsylvania for the PA Department of Health’s Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Program. This special Supplemental Nutrition Program provides Federal grants to States for supplemental foods, healthcare referrals, and nutrition education for low-income pregnant, breastfeeding, and non-breastfeeding postpartum women, and to infants and children up to age five who are found to be at nutritional risk. Established as a permanent program in 1974, WIC is considered the premiere public health program for the Department of Agriculture.Scholars of Change Discussion

My dream is to not only complete my PhD from Walden University, but to someday call Walden University my employer and continue to work with some of the most amazing professors and mentors I have ever had the pleasure of learning from, getting to know them on a personal level, and changing the lives of more people just as Walden University changed mine. Scholars of Change Discussion

As you prepare for this Discussion: Scholars of Change Discussion

  • Reflect on how you would like to harness all you have learned to be an agent for social change in your community as a healthcare professional.
  • View several videos from the Scholars of Change website.

BY DAY 4

Post a thoughtful response to the following: Scholars of Change Discussion

  • Describe your personal commitment to positive social change in your community as a health professional.
  • Explain how your Walden experience might have strengthened your ability to advocate for social change in your community.
  • Explain two ways that your Program of Study might be strengthened to enhance student awareness of social change in the health field.
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B.S. in Healthcare Management

Program Learning Outcomes

  1. Critically appraise the context and quality of healthcare delivery inside and outside of the United States.
  2. Evaluate health-related research and research methods.
  3. Analyze how population health impacts healthcare (including behavioral, demographic, and cultural factors).
  4. Explain how different factors impact the delivery of healthcare services (including technology, legal, and ethical factors).
  5. Evaluate the inter-professional approach to healthcare delivery. Scholars of Change Discussion
  6. Articulate critical issues in acute and long-term care from the perspective of patient and practitioner.
  7. Analyze evidence-based factors that impact a health care organization’s performance, quality, and safety.
  8. Apply foundational healthcare economic evaluation and financial management skills.
  9. Apply strategic planning methods to healthcare organizations (including planning, implementing, and marketing).
  10. Evaluate human resource methods of managing healthcare employees.
  11. Demonstrate an understanding of healthcare financial issues (including insurance, reimbursement, and prospective payment). Scholars of Change Discussion

Week 5: Social Change Scholars of Change Discussion

A cornerstone of the Walden University mission is its commitment to social change. Obviously, that same dedication is a critical aspect of health-related professions as well. Walden defines positive social change as “the intentional application of ideas and strategies that promote each individual’s personal value and dignity” (Walden, n.d.). One powerful way to achieve positive social change is by improving the health and quality of life for individuals and creating social conditions that empower these individuals.

Social change is not just an individual pursuit. Communities and organizations also play an important role in advancing the cause of positive social change. As a health professional, you will enjoy a unique opportunity to be a role model for the cause of social change in your organization and in your community. As an ethical scholar-practitioner, you have the ability—and an obligation—to promote positive social change.

This week, you will consider your opportunities to advance social change within your community. You will also complete Assignment 4-your Final Mini Literature Review and continue work on Assignment 5-your Final Capstone Project.

Reference Scholars of Change Discussion

Walden University. (n.d.). Social change. Retrieved August 28, 2018, from https://www.waldenu.edu/about/social-change

Learning Objectives

Students will: Scholars of Change Discussion

  • Examine individual contributions to social change
  • Analyze experiences that contributed to your becoming a social change agent
  • Analyze scholarly literature on health issues and Program Learning Outcomes

Learning Resources

Note: To access this week’s library resources, please click on the link to the Course Readings List, found in the Course Materials section of your Syllabus.

Required Readings

Hage, J., & Valdez, J. J. (2017). Institutionalizing and sustaining social change in health systems: The case of Uganda. Health Policy and Planning, 32(9), 1248–1255. doi:10.1093/heapol/czx066

 

Walden University. (n.d.). Scholars of change. Retrieved December 14, 2018, from http://www.waldenu.edu/about/social-change/scholars-of-change

 

Walden sponsors the Scholars of Change video contest in order to spotlight the stories of Walden students and alumni who have put into practice Walden’s commitment to social change. View a selection of videos in preparation for this week’s Discussion.

Walden University. (n.d.). Social change. Retrieved December 14, 2018, from https://www.waldenu.edu/about/social-change

Walden University. (n.d.). Uploading media in your Blackboard classroom. Retrieved November 30, 2018 from http://mym.cdn.laureate-media.com/2dett4d/Walden/software/HELP/_assets/docs/WAL_Kaltura2.0.pdf

Document: Capstone Project Guide (Word)

Document: B.S. Health Studies Capstone Project Template (PowerPoint)

Document: B.S. Public Health Capstone Project Template (PowerPoint)

Document: B.S. Healthcare Management Capstone Project Template (PowerPoint)

Document: Peer Feedback Rubric (Microsoft Word)

 

Program Learning Outcomes

Document: BS Health Studies Program Learning Outcomes (Microsoft Word)

Document: BS Public Health Program Learning Outcomes (Microsoft Word)

Document: BS Healthcare Management Program Learning Outcomes (Microsoft Word)

 

Discussion: Scholars of Change

As noted in the Learning Resources this week, health professionals can be leaders of social change. Consider the story of Paul Amigh, a student and teaching assistant at Walden:

My name is Paul Amigh (pronounced Ah-me’), and I am a student in the PhD Public Health program at Walden University with a concentration in Epidemiology and a Teaching Assistant for the School of Health Sciences bachelor’s degree programs. I have obtained my entire college experience from Walden University, and it has changed my life and given me the desire to change the lives of others.

I am a U.S. Army veteran who graduated from the Academy of Health Sciences, attended vocational school in Central PA for my L.P.N. license, and hold a BS in Public Health with a concentration in Health Informatics from Walden University. I have spent my life in service of my country and others working as medic, a prison nurse, travel nurse, and as a charge nurse in an advanced Alzheimer’s unit.

Feeling a greater need to do more for my community and improve the lives of others, it was my bachelor’s degree from Walden University that gave me the opportunity to work in education. I began teaching medical assisting, medical billing and coding, and health informatics classes at a local technical school in Central Pennsylvania, but I still felt I could do more.Scholars of Change Discussion

I created a local chapter of SkillsUSA and began to train students in leadership and skills competitions related to their chosen vocational career path. It was here I discovered students just need someone to believe in them. Spending a few hours each day training and working with these students to improve upon the soft skills employers are looking for in communication, conflict resolution, critical thinking, and fundraising the entire cost of membership and travel, I created Champions at Work. Over the last six years, I have personally trained and mentored more than 50 Pennsylvania State Gold Medalists and trained fifteen National Medalists, with five of them becoming national champions! Scholars of Change Discussion

This October I stepped down from teaching and have been appointed as the new Public Health Program Administrator of Western Pennsylvania for the PA Department of Health’s Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Program. This special Supplemental Nutrition Program provides Federal grants to States for supplemental foods, healthcare referrals, and nutrition education for low-income pregnant, breastfeeding, and non-breastfeeding postpartum women, and to infants and children up to age five who are found to be at nutritional risk. Established as a permanent program in 1974, WIC is considered the premiere public health program for the Department of Agriculture. Scholars of Change Discussion

My dream is to not only complete my PhD from Walden University, but to someday call Walden University my employer and continue to work with some of the most amazing professors and mentors I have ever had the pleasure of learning from, getting to know them on a personal level, and changing the lives of more people just as Walden University changed mine.

As you prepare for this Discussion: Scholars of Change Discussion

By Day 4

Post a thoughtful response to the following:

  • Describe your personal commitment to positive social change in your community as a health professional.
  • Explain how your Walden experience might have strengthened your ability to advocate for social change in your community.
  • Explain two ways that your Program of Study might be strengthened to enhance student awareness of social change in the health field.

Read a selection of your colleagues’ postings. Scholars of Change Discussion

By Day 6

Respond to at least two of your colleagues’ postings. Choose one colleague who is within your program, and one colleague who is outside of your program. Respond in one or more of the following ways:

  • Offer additional insight on your colleague’s commitment to social change.
  • Explain how your colleague’s social change commitment could be applied outside of their community and/or how it could be applied within your community. Scholars of Change Discussion
  • Describe additional experiences that may further expose students to positive social change within your colleague’s Program of Study.

Return to this Discussion in a few days to read the responses to your initial posting. Note what you have learned and/or any insights you have gained as a result of your colleagues’ comments. You are welcome to post these final insights.

Submission and Grading Information

Scholars of Change Discussion