Tag Archives: health science

SJSU students advocate for tobacco free CSUs

San José State University students Alexandra Rossi and Pete Cadano attended a recent California State University board of trustees’ meeting in Long Beach to advocate for smoke-free campuses. The two students are active in COUGH-SJSU, an advocacy group that works to educate students about the effects of tobacco products along with e-cigarettes.

The two students are enrolled in the College of Applied Sciences and Arts Health Science and Recreation department. Through COUGH-SJSU, they often host informational booths on campus to educate students, faculty and staff about the effects of tobacco use as well as to advocate for a tobacco-free campus.

Rossi was mentioned in an article about the board meeting published on March 26 in the Daily Titan, CSU Fullerton’s campus newspaper. According to the article three CSU campuses have already implemented a smoking ban, including CSU Fullerton, CSU Sacramento and San Diego State University.

To read the full article, visit http://www.dailytitan.com/2014/03/csu-board-of-trustees-addresses-bargaining-maintenance-and-smoking-ban/.

Health Science grad to study e-cigarettes, hookah

A College of Applied Sciences and Arts Health Science student who graduated in December from San José State University has been selected as a youth activism fellow for a nonprofit that is dedicated to reducing tobacco usage among youth, according to an article featured in the Mercury News .

Isra Ahmad will be researching the use of hookah and e-cigarettes in and around San Jose State University for Legacy, a nonprofit dedicated to create the first tobacco-free generation. According to statistics from Legacy, 44.7 percent of high school students have tried a cigarette and 15.8 percent currently use cigarettes.  Their statistics show that 90 percent of adult smokers start smoking by 19 years of age and 99 percent by the age of 26.

Ahmad said she was interested in research on tobacco because of the pervasive use of tobacco in South Asian culture.

To read the full article on Ahmad, visit http://www.mercurynews.com/milpitas/ci_25135573/milpitas-native-selected-national-fellowship-study-e-cigarettes

Movember gets a move on in Health Science

Frank Strona

San Jose State University Health Science Professor Frank Strona is trying to raise awareness of men’s health issues through the “Movember Campaign,” a movement that was launched to focus on such illnesses as prostate and testicular cancer as well as men’s mental health issues.

Strona and other Movember participants seek out pledges to raise money for the movement. They each draw attention to the effort by growing a mustache for the month of November.

Strona, who is an SJSU alum who teaches a Health Science course on new media technology for public health, shaved off his trademark beard on Nov. 1. He is working with 10 of his friends on the team effort to raise awareness.

“In this country men’s health issues such as testicular and prostate cancers and mental health needs take a back seat to more trendy health issues that are more comfortable to talk about in public,” Strona said. “Our team, called Stachekrieg, went from full beards to clean shaven and are now in the process of growing the mustaches in. Each of us participates for different reasons. Some are survivors – others have friends and family who would have benefited from early detection, awareness or more research.”

The team includes public health leaders, barbers, artists, body workers, technology specialists and more, according to Strona. The team was ranked sixth in the country this week for fundraising, with several more weeks to go.

To find out more about Movember and the StacheKrieg team, visit http://stachekrieg.com/ or http://www.MoBro.co/FrankStrona. To donate to the team, visit http://us.movember.com/team/1015181.

HS 158 Sampler Digital Presentation Invite: Join Us on May 7th

 

by Frank Strona

We invite you to visit with us on Tuesday, May 7th from 3:00 – 5:45 and see engaged and creative students who have created innovative digital projects based on 21st Century Learning and new media tools.  We will be holding the Sampler at the MLK Library Room #225/229 on the SJSU campus.  Each semester the students in HS158 work on community hosted projects that create opportunities to improve the objectives of the organization.

This year we have again adopted the Prezi.com tool to replace the traditional powerpoint presentations style. New this semester, students will provide an archive version with audio of their presentations which can be sent out via shared links after the event.

Read more about HS158 on the Casa Blog: December 2013,  April 14, 2013, and visit our class About.Me page here for a short overview. We also have a “work in progress blog” at www.HealthCommTech.com.

More info coming soon.

Health Science 158 Class Integrates 21st Century Tech for 21st Century Care

In the past year, we have had some excellent examples of CASA professors using edu-tech in classrooms to transform the way students learn, collaborate, and share. One standout example can be seen in the work being done in HS 158 Health Communications & Technology, led by edu-tech innovator Frank Strona and TA Rebecca Krueger. The students develop health communication projects using 21st century web-media and other online technologies, which are then presented by students to community hosts and partners at the end of the semester. This is an excellent example of using technology to connect students, community partners, and solid pedagogical practices. Student groups dedicate an entire semester to creating a digital, interactive technology-based project or educational interventions. The most recent event was held Tuesday December 4th, 2012 in rooms 225/229 of the Dr. MLK Jr. Library from 3:00pm to 5:45pm.

Reflecting on last semester event, Krueger noted, “It was such a delight to see students from HS158 proudly present their semester-long projects during the annual Sampler Event and Celebration on December 4, 2012. As a Teaching Associate (TA) for the course, it was both a joy and a treat to watch these young professionals display their hard work and accomplishments, ultimately donating a semester’s worth of their good services to various health-related community efforts around the Bay Area. Frank Strona’s dedication to the utilization of 21st century technology in the classroom arms students with real-world skills and experiences that will prepare them to function in today’s diverse and interconnected workforce. I have no doubt that students in HS158 will be well prepared not only to meet the needs of the modern workplace, but they will excel in it!”

Dave Spath, from California Public Health Association-North (CPHA-N) one of Community Hosts for the end-of-semester event, noted on last semester’s event, “I was impressed by the creativity of the three groups particularly the design of the short videos. I thought that the use of their fellow students in the short videos was an excellent way to convey a very strong message to their peers on the subject matter i.e., the important health issue of STDs and why they should become involved in an organization that supports public health activities.  I was frankly amazed that these students who prior to taking the class had little experience in health communication and available technologies were able to produce such polished products in the time that they had available.  I look forward to my organization sponsoring additional projects in the future.”

HS158 attempts to engage its students in an active experience that explores the evolving roles of the Health Science graduate in the workplace today. Core elements of the course allow students to build on group skills, new digital technologies and the Internet as tools for health promotion, disease prevention, and health care. HS158 is founded on a belief that a health professional’s relationship in the team process is as integral to the professional today as is a thorough understanding and integration of how technology can act as a partner to improve local community health communication, increase access to programs and improve community health outcomes.

Upon successfully completing this course, students are able to:

  1. Understand the history, use, and potential of technology and new social media in Health Communication.
  2. Assess the scientific merit (evaluate) of information posted on the web, as well as other uses of non-scientific information for understanding community health and education/communication opportunities.
  3. Complete a comprehensive team project that will be used to explore and address health communication and technology.
  4. Assess and identify appropriate local and national Social Media Resources.
  5. Develop and present material in a professional manner, using current technology- based tools.
  6. Develop a digital, interactive technology-based project or educational intervention.

Look for a follow-up on this blog for info on future events for HS158.