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Your Community Is Still Sitting Too Much [New Guidelines]

American’s are sitting too much and exercising too little, according to the new “Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans” (PDF; 14 MB). from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Back in 2008, we weren’t exercising enough, and after looking at about 27,000 adults, we still aren’t—and we’re sitting more. People who sit more than …

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How One CHW Feeds Her Love of Health Education

Tasha Whitaker, CHW

Some people might picture community health workers as busy little worker bees buzzing around with surveys, checklists, and clipboards. There’s an element of truth to that image: They’re indeed active as they educate clients and patients about health care issues and connect them with appropriate services and resources.

But CHWs aren’t just names on some roster – they have individual, unique backgrounds and experience that qualify them to perform this increasingly important role in the nation’s health care system.

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10 Free Apps for Tobacco Cessation

Some smokers will tell you cigarettes give them something to do with their hands. Here are 10 free smartphone apps that occupy the fingers of people who want to quit.

Smoking and smartphone

1. SmokefreeTXT

“SmokefreeTXT is a mobile text messaging program that provides 24/7 tips, advice, and encouragement to help you quit smoking.”

2. quitSTART

QuitSTART is a free app made for teens who want to quit smoking, but adults can use it too. This app takes the information about an individual’s smoking history and offers customized tips, inspiration, and challenges to help become smoke-free.

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We Can Leave Tobacco Behind

It was the summer of 1957, and the way my parents met was like something out of an Elvis movie: a waterskiing blind date. My mother, Annette, a skinny 17-year-old, hit the water so hard at Denver’s Cherry Creek Reservoir that it pulled off her bikini top. Mortified, she hid behind her best friend Dee, who struggled to cover Mom while my 20-year-old eventual dad, Sherman, reclaimed her top.

Could you blame him for asking her out on a second date? And another after that?

To be that young in 1957 was to be hale, hearty, and invincible. They went to sock hops and double features. They went spelunking in the Rockies and took entry-level jobs with odd hours. Soon they eloped and started a family. My two sisters and brother came just a year and a half apart from one another. It was a typical home full of chaos and kids – and cigarettes.

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Want to Make America the Healthiest Nation by 2030?

Logo for National Public Health WeekAmericans, you need to take better care of yourselves. Most of us who feel passionate about healthy lifestyles know this, which is why we fight so hard to schedule you for screenings, sign you up for health care, help you put down that cigarette, and encourage you to watch your diets.

Every April, people who feel passionate about public health come together as part of National Public Health Week in an effort to understand the issues and strengthen policies. The goal is to make America the healthiest nation in the world by 2030 – just one generation away. The effort, organized by the American Public Health Association, “develops a national campaign to educate the public, policymakers, and practitioners about issues related to each year’s theme.”

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Report on Washington State’s Popular CHW Training Program

Community health workers in Washington are getting better at their jobs.

Washington State’s Popular CHW Training Program Evaluation

That’s according to the results of a state-wide program survey published by the Washington State Department of Health’s Office of Healthy Communities. Since 2011, the program has trained over 1000 people in the role of community health worker (CHW) in everything from core competencies such as organizational skills to health-specific topics such as behavioral health care.

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Spend Down Your 2014 Budget and Build CHW Skills

October is almost over–time to use up your budget before the end of the year before you lose it. An easy way to enrich your training program and build skills among your staff is to offer new courses from CHWTraining.org. Courses for non-clinical health workers include: •    Health Literacy: A Start
•    Introduction to the Newest Vital Sign
•    Navigating Health Insurance
•    Behavioral Healthcare
•    Diabetes and Pre-Diabetes
•    Facilitating Online Professional Development View the full list of courses here: http://chwtraining.org/course Register for a cohort of 10 by November 15 and receive 20% off.

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