Health promotion and partnerships: collaboration of a community health management center, county health bureau, and university nursing program.

Abstract

Effective partnerships were established between a community health management center, a county health bureau and a university nursing program. A health fair was undertaken to heighten public health awareness through the collaboration of these various agencies. In this research, formative, process, and summative evaluations were conducted to determine the benefits of partnerships. Elements evaluated included the planning process, health fair relevancy, integration of community resources, participants satisfaction and knowledge acquisition, and partnership satisfaction. The samples of this study included (1) 529 adult participants who completed the on-site evaluation questionnaires; (2) 1,090 child participants who returned gift-reward cards; (3) 114 partners who gave written feedback on their satisfaction; and (4) 57 third-year and 16 fourth-year undergraduate nursing student participants. Data was collected from the evidence report of the Department of Health, the project proposal, activity protocols, meeting records, the project final report, students term papers, and questionnaires. The chief administrator of the County Health Bureau was very impressed with the creative exhibits in the fair and, therefore, invited a coalition to continue further workshops. Seventeen educational exhibits, two dance programs and two drama programs related to health issues were demonstrated in the fair. Resources from community organizations were successfully integrated and allocated. Community participants expressed satisfaction with the fair and anticipated similar activities in the future. Participants revealed more than 80% accuracy in health knowledge quizzes. The senior nursing students highlighted their interaction with the community, community health nurses, and health volunteers. Community-based health promotion and nursing education can be successfully connected when various disciplines and sectors form effective partnerships.