Assignment: Windshield Survey/Community Assessment
Conduct a “Windshield Survey” in a section of your community. Instructions for the survey can be found in Stanhope and Lancaster (2020) on page 383, Table 17.5. As you notice, conducting a Windshield Survey requires that you either walk around or drive around a particular section of the community and take notes about what you observe. A Windshield Survey cannot be conducted by reviewing websites or Google Earth only. It requires actually taking a look at the selected area of the community. This survey should be focused on the problem and population you have selected for your practicum project. If you choose, for example, obesity among Hispanic schoolchildren, you might want to locate a section of the community where many Hispanic children live, or you might want to conduct the Windshield Survey around where Hispanic children attend school. If Hispanic children are not found in a specific section of your community (e.g., Chinatown in San Francisco or Harlem in New York), then you may select the section of the community where you live or work but pay particular attention to your practicum population and practicum problem as you conduct a survey of the community as viewed through the eyes of the public health nurse.
Submit a 3- to 4-page paper including:
- Introduction to the community, including the name of the community and any interesting or historical facts you would like to add about where you live
- Photographs of the selected area of the community that serve as evidence of your observations and hypotheses
- Windshield Survey findings, including a description of the section of your community that you chose to survey
- Description of the Vulnerable Population and Available Resources
- Demographics of the vulnerable population
- What social determinants create their vulnerable status?
- What community strengths exist to assist this population?
- Conclusions based on Nursing Assessment of the Community
- Select at least 5 scholarly resources to support your assessment. Websites may be included but the paper must include scholarly resources in its development.
For this Assignment, review the following:
- AWE Checklist (Level 4000)
- BSN Program Top Ten Citations and References
- Walden paper template (no abstract or running head required)
- The Assignment 3 Rubric
NO NEED FOR PICTURES TO BE ADDED. I HAVE MY OWN PICTURES I CAN INSERT IN THE PAPER ONCE COMPLETE
Expert Solution Preview
Introduction:
The Windshield Survey/Community Assessment assignment requires conducting a comprehensive survey of a community to identify its strengths, weaknesses, and resources, which can be used in providing healthcare services to a vulnerable population. For this assignment, the selected community is where the student lives or works, and the focus should be on the practicum problem and population. The paper aims to provide a detailed description of the community, vulnerable population, available resources, and conclusions based on the nursing assessment of the community. The paper also requires at least five scholarly resources to back up the assessment.
Answer:
The selected community for this paper is Los Angeles, California, located in the southwestern part of the United States. Los Angeles is a highly diverse city, with a population of over 4 million people. The city has a rich history and is known for its entertainment industry, beaches, and mild weather conditions.
The selected area of the community for this survey is the South Central Los Angeles neighborhood, which is known for its high crime rates, poverty, and gang violence. The community is predominantly African-American and Latino, with a few Asian and White residents. The primary languages spoken in this area are English and Spanish.
The vulnerable population in this community includes low-income families, homeless individuals, children from low-income families, and people with chronic illnesses such as diabetes and hypertension. The primary social determinants that create their vulnerable status include poverty, unemployment, substandard housing, lack of access to quality education, and limited access to healthcare services.
Despite the high rate of poverty and crime in this neighborhood, there are some community strengths that can be leveraged to assist this population. For instance, there are several community-based organizations, including churches and non-profits that provide essential resources such as food and shelter to the homeless, job training programs for low-income families, and healthcare services to uninsured residents.
In conclusion, the Windshield Survey/Community Assessment is an essential tool for identifying the strengths, weaknesses, and resources of a community. This survey provides crucial information that can be used in developing effective healthcare policies and interventions for vulnerable populations. The selected community for this paper is South Central Los Angeles, which faces various socioeconomic challenges that create a vulnerable population. However, the community also has several strengths that can be harnessed to assist this population.
