“The mission of the community health nursing course is to educate student nurses to provide nursing care to groups of persons in the community.”
— Deb McLachlan

Nursing students take course to new level
Health fair organized to help low income school
By David Reese
Staff Reporter

Senior-level students in the Harris School of Nursing will present a health fair, “Spring Into Good Health,” at Our Mother of Mercy School in Fort Worth today.

Deb McLachlan, nursing professor, said the health fair was designed by senior nursing students Leslie Boykin, Amanda Fulton, Deana Harbach, Hillary Hardy and Asha White.
She said they planned the program as their semester project in their senior level community health nursing course.

“The mission of the community health nursing course is to educate student nurses to provide nursing care to groups of persons in the community,” said McLachlan.

Fulton, a senior nursing major, said the community health nursing course has approximately 35 to 40 students.

She said the nursing students are broken into groups of about five to six to work on their individual projects.

McLachlan said the student nurses assessed the health needs of the school community by surveying and interviewing the students, teachers and principal.

“This education (community health nursing) is critical to the nursing profession as we need nurses to work with individuals, families and groups in the community to assist them in preserving, protecting and promoting health,” said McLachlan.

Fulton said Our Mother of Mercy School is located at 1009 E. Terrell Ave. in a lower income neighborhood.

She said the school is supported by the Catholic church but only 20 of the 204 pre-kindergarten through 8th grade students or approximately 9.8 percent of the total population are Catholic.

McLachlan said the health fair is open to the entire student body as well as teachers and staff.

Fulton said the fair will begin at 8:30 a.m. with four booths set up about animal safety, washing hands, first aid/home alone and weather safety.

She said after lunch the Fort Worth Fire Department will give a demonstration on fire safety.

“My nursing students have collaborated and worked in conjunction with the American Red Cross, Fort Worth Police and Fire departments and Animal Services,” said McLachlan.

David Reese
d.w.reese@student.tcu.edu

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