Community Assessment (COMHEALTH-II) is a computer assisted instructional (CAI) program course that describes intermediate level concepts and issues of Community/Public Health Assessment. It focuses on population level community health nursing practice, emphasizing self-care and partnerships.

 

The Course includes lessons on:

Community theory	Community as Client
Community level nursing process	History of Healthcare
Contemporary health systems	Ethics
Current issues in community health

The role of the computer is to facilitate the learning process through active involvement by the student. The CAI presents information and then provides multiple choice decision points to test the student's understanding of the information presented. The program responds to incorrect choices at the decision points by providing correct information and sending the student back to choose again to reinforce the correct decision. It tests the student's ability to use lesson content in a contextual setting.

The student handbook lessons correspond to the computer lessons. The handbook includes objectives, terms, interactive material, places for notes, references, and a bibliography for each lesson. Each handbook lesson is 10-11 pages long. I recommend you read the terms prior to beginning each lesson. I listed the terms in the same order as they appear in the lesson. The Handbook also serves as “Field Document” for student/participants to use while field work is employed for Assessment Projects.

You can use the interactive material in the study guide either while you are doing the computer lesson or following the completion of the computer lesson. Most of the diagrams are interactive and have blanks for you to fill with words or phrases discussed in the computer lesson content The illustrations are representations of the lesson content and also have blanks for you to insert the appropriate words. I located the answer key at the end of each lesson. I strongly urge you to use the handbook because it is an important part of learning this material. It will also give you a permanent record of the content in the CAI as well as provide an invaluable field notebook.

This Assessment Course is meant to assist learning and facilitate coursework. It does not replace but supplements as direct or indirect resource classroom instruction, readings, or clinical experiences. It is used for continuing or distance education.  It is meant to augment and facilitate coursework. This course is written on a intermediate level and questions will be mainly on the knowledge, comprehension, and application levels.

One of my major teaching goals is to make Community Health content more interesting and understandable for all students. I hope you benefit from this course approach, both in what you learn and in your enjoyment of the process.