The Zachary Betties

1. The Zachary Betties

2. Abrief cultural assessment of the community: • Zachary, population 15,329, is a small but growing city located 12 miles north of downtown Baton Rouge. • From 2003-2010, Zachary schools were consistently ranked #1 in the state of Louisiana. • Zachary has a relatively low crime rate, is grounded in religious beliefs (with 69 churches located within 24 square miles), is a very family-friendly community, and has a unique history with an alluring historic district located downtown that provides a quaint image of small-town life from the 19th century through the 1960s.

3. Abrief cultural assessment of the community: • While the new sections of town are well-equipped with restaurants, shopping centers, BREC facilities, and side-walks, the old section of town have no side-walks and no easy access to restaurants or shopping centers. • One thing that unifies the community is its’ high incidence of heart disease, cancer, cerebrovascular disease, diabetes, and obesity overall.

4. The priority health needs that the team identified from the community assessment: • Enhanced Nutrition management (standard and disease-based) • Educate on the importance of proper dietary intake and serving size. • Educate on meal restrictions and correlation to standard and/or existing disease processes. • Teach that moderation of portions is a good way for maintaining adequate caloric intake. • Educate on choosing the healthier choice at meal time rather than the alternative meal high in fat and salt content.

5. The priority health needs that the team identified from the community assessment: • Increased Physical Activity (exercise, dance, walking, etc.) • Encourage healthy physical exercise with adequate rest periods before and after activity. • Provide instruction on proper warm-up and cool down exercises. • Reinforce positive effects of exercise in improving mortality and quality of life. • Provide positive feedback on the patients’ efforts.

6. Nursing Diagnosis:Knowledge deficit related to improper nutrition and insufficient activity levels as evidenced by high obesity rates, diabetes, cardiac, and cancer issues.

7. The intervention that was done in the community: • Our intervention goal was to promote healthy, well-balanced eating among the elderly, as well as to promote exercise through dance. • We planned a “senior prom” titled “A Night with The Betties.” • We served sandwiches on wheat bread, created vegetable and fruit platters, and had small portions of cake at the “senior prom.” • We had a DJ to play music in order to encourage the residents to dance. • Prior to having our event, we visited Zachary Manor weekly to participate with their normal exercise routine, and to serve the residents snacks.

8. The evaluation of the community intervention. • Our intervention was based on the nursing diagnosis : Knowledge deficit related to improper nutrition and insufficient activity levels, as evidenced by high obesity rates, diabetes, cardiac, and cancer issues. • Evaluating the intervention: We created an interactive learning experience for the residents of Zachary Manor to engage and enhance their knowledge of ‘healthy’ foods and moderate portion size.

9. The evaluation of the community intervention. • Incorporating music from the 1950s allowed the residents to retell memories while dancing, thus increasing their mental capacity and physical activity without realizing it. • The residents were able to recognize which foods were healthy and how much was a moderate portion size. Our intervention’s success was met, nay, exceeded by the overwhelming reception and participation from the residents.

10. Plans for future interventions in the community: • Coordination with BREC in creating a Health Fair • Organize regular blood pressure screenings throughout the area • Create and organize regular healthy cooking classes for residents in the high school cafeteria