Reference no: EM133688989 , Length: word count:2000

Health and Wellbeing in the Cross-Cultural Community

Assessment Overview

Topic - Poor Nutrition and its Implications for Public Health in NSW community of your choice

Assessment - Reflective Practice Assignment

The second assessment task for this unit is a reflective essay. This is an individual assignment of approximately 2000 words and is based on your experience and observations this term. Your essay must consist of your reflection on your evolving learning that has taken place during the course of the term. The focus of the essay is to show your deepening understanding of issues that may people and society, especially in the context of cross-cultural communities like the one we live in, and yourself as a developing practitioner. Your essay should address the following points: 1) a very brief summary of some of the major public health issues affecting your community; 2)the actual effects on groups and individuals; 3) the potential effects of this kind of situation on a cross-cultural community; and 4) what you, as a developing public health practitioner have learned that can apply to addressing this situation. You do not necessarily need academic references for this assignment but you will have to refer to outside sources for item 2 above. It is recommended that you use the news media for this, but please make sure that your sources relate specifically to the community you are discussing, which must be identified. For Item 3, you may refer to other locations in Australia and the world as a comparison (in this case, you will need references to media sources), but this section should reflect your considered opinion. In choosing sources for this assignment, make sure you refer only to reputable media (i.e. newspapers, television broadcasters, radio broadcasters, etc.; it is not acceptable to use social media sources, unless they come from reputable organizations. In other words, the personal opinion of individual members of society should not be used to address item 2 or support item 3.

This is a reflective assignment, so a more informal writing style is acceptable. However, the reflection must not be wholly descriptive. It must contain an assessment of the way in which your views or thinking have changed and what you have learned about yourself as a practitioner and the community in which you are working.

While this assessment is not due until week 12 of the term, it will be beneficial to make some notes for yourself over the course of the term that you can refer to when you write your reflective essay.

The case study is a major research paper examining the nature, significance, and impacts of a public health concern on a specific community. It is necessary to undertake significant research into the ways your chosen community is affected by the public health concern and how the concern is addressed in this context. You will need to draw on your knowledge of multiple elements of public health thinking and practice in order to develop a structured analysis of current initiatives that are in place that aim to address your chosen topic. These elements could include disease/infection control measures, public policy and planning, stakeholder relationships, cultural context, and systems thinking, among others. It is necessary to apply your examination of relevant research relating to the public health concern in your chosen community to develop your own original discussion of possible initiatives and/or avenues for further research that could address the concern in the future.

Topics

Please choose a topic from the list below for your case study. You must advise your tutor of your chosen topic by email by the end of week 2.

The topics for the case study are as follows:

1. Dengue Haemorrhagic Feverin[a community of your choice]
2. Waste Managementin [a community of your choice]
3. The Aging Population and Its Implications for Public Health in[a community of your choice]
4. Poor Nutrition and Its Implications for Public Health in [a community of your choice]
5. Occupational Injuries in [a community of your choice]
6. Vaccine-Preventable Diseases of Childhood in [a community of your choice]
7. Maternal and Infant Morbidity and Mortality in [a community of your choice]
8. Earthquakes/Floods/Fire/Other Natural Disaster in [a community of your choice] N.B. If you choose this topic, you will need to choose and specify a natural disaster that is relevant to your chosen community
9. Cancer in [a community of your choice]
10. Access to Healthcare in [a community of your choice]
11. Water Quality and Its Implications for Public Health in [a community of your choice]
12. The Relationship Between the Living Environment and Public Health in [a community of your choice]

For each topic on the list above, a community must be specified that is directly affected by the public health concern. Your chosen community should be specified where indicated above, eg. Occupational Injuries in Automotive Machinists; Maternal and Infant Morbidity and Mortality in Australian Immigrants from Non-English Speaking Backgrounds; etc.

If you would like to propose your own topic for the case study, you must seek approval from your tutor. If you choose to do so, please submit a topic proposal to your tutor by email detailing the specific public health concern and community that you wish to discuss before the end of week 2.
Structure

The case study must be structured with the following sections:

Part 1
1. Introduction
2. Population at Risk
3. Planning Initiatives
4. Review of Existing Initiatives
Part 2
5. A Systems Approach to the Case
6. Risks and Advantages
7. Expert Assessment

Please note that sections 1 to 4 constitute the first part of the case study. Sections 5 to 7 constitute the second part of the case study. If you are completing the first part of the case study, your paper must include sections 1 to 4 as outlined above.

If you are completing the second part of the case study, you must complete sections 5 to 7 as outlined above. These sections must be added to your previously completed first partof the case study - your topic will be the same as in your previously completed first part. Your final submission must include sections 1 to 7 as outlined above in a single document.

Literature

You must conduct significant research into your chosen topic as part of the case study. A review of relevant literature is essential to provide appropriate context and background for your chosen topic, support your original analysis, and place your ideas in the context of current trends in public health research, thinking, and practice. It is essential that all literature used to develop your case study is correctly cited and listed in a reference list according to standard academic formatting practices.

Depending on your chosen topic, you might need to examine literature from a variety of public health perspectives to develop and support your analysis. For example, in addition to a body of scholarly research that directly discusses the impact of your chosen public health concern on the community, you might also refer to literature from related fields such as culture, history, or ethics as well as policy documents, health promotion materials, etc.Please note that there is no number of references that is automatically correct when developing your case study. Instead, it is up to you to consider the research that relates to your chosen public health concern, examine the research as it applies directly and indirectly to your chosen community, and include references to sources that directly reinforce and develop your analysis. It is important to remember that your research must focus on your chosen topic as it impacts one specific community group. As such, it will be necessary to evaluate all literature in the context of the insight that the research gives into the public health concern as how it affects the specific community.

Some important questions to consider when examining the body of literature relating to your chosen topic could be:

• What insight does the research give us into the defining characteristics of your chosen community?
• What insight does the research give us into what policies/strategies/initiatives are the most relevant to your chosen community, and why?
• What does the research show us about how risk is defined and measured in the context of your chosen community?
• How has your chosen topic been treated in the past, and how have social/cultural attitudes toward the public health concern changed within your chosen community?
• How is the risk associated with your chosen topic currently viewed in the context of public health thinking and practice?

While you must demonstrate knowledge of current trends in the research and the place of your ideas in this context through an examination of relevant literature, it is important to remember that you do not necessarily have to agree with every idea from the literature. This is especially important when completing sections 4 and 7 of the case study - you must include your own evaluation of the significance and effectiveness of the initiatives discussed and develop your own analysis of the reasons why these initiatives are successful/unsuccessful. You must also develop your own ideas as to how your chosen public health concern could be better addressed and/or approaches that you think would be beneficial to your chosen community. This means that you do not necessarily have to agree with the conclusions drawn in the literature. Please note, however, that you must objectively discuss and demonstrate your understanding of the research in the context of public health thinking and practice, regardless of how you develop your own original analysis.

Referencing

All source material used to develop your analysis for your case study must be correctly cited in-text.

Style and Formatting

The case study must be presented as an academic research paper. As such, a formal academic writing style is required in the presentation of your assignment. In addition to the structure outlined above, you must maintain a tone that is consistent with the standards of academic research. This includes correct spelling, punctuation, and grammar as well as stylistic elements of language and formatting.

In order to ensure that your case study adheres to an appropriate academic presentation standard, please keep in mind the following basic elements of style and formatting:

1. Avoid the first person.
Example: Instead of "I think health promotion campaigns in languages other than English are effective because..." consider expression such as "The effectiveness of health promotion campaigns in languages other than English can be observed through..."

2. Avoid the use of impersonal "you."
Example: Instead of "You can see in Figure 1 above..." consider expression such as "It can be seen in Figure 1 above that..." or "Figure 1 above indicates that..."

3. Avoid absolutes and statements of universality. This applies even when discussing ideas that are generally accepted as fact and/or are a part of collective cultural knowledge.
Example: Instead of "In his study, Smith (2021) proves that there is a connection between socioeconomic status and the perception of trustworthiness of healthcare practitioners..." or "Everyone knows smoking causes cancer..." consider expression such as "Smith (2021) suggests that there is a connection between socioeconomic status and the perception of trustworthiness of healthcare practitioners..." and "Smoking is widely understood to be a contributing factor to the development of cancer..."

4. Avoid weighted/emotive language. It is important to be aware of the connotations of words and maintain an objective tone, especially when discussing ideas that are commonly associated with a culturally determined emotional response and/or subjective ideals that are based in shared cultural knowledge.
Example: Instead of "The tragic destruction caused by the earthquake obviously devastated the surrounding communities..." or "Lazy people have poor eating habits..." consider expression such as "The destructive force of the earthquake caused both physical and psychological damage, which can be observed through..." and "There are many factors that are associated with lifestyle choices such as eating habits, including complex social/perceptual/experiential factors..."

5. Be mindful of the placement of in-text citations. It is essential to make it clear when you are summarizing/paraphrasing ideas from the literature and when you are presenting your own analysis. In-text citations should not be placed where you are expressing your opinion and/or discussing your interpretation/evaluation of ideas, practices, etc. Sentence structure can be instrumental in clarifying how you are using the literature.

6. Avoid non-standard paragraph structure. There should always be a blank line between paragraphs - always press enter twice after the end of a paragraph - and before and after a section heading.

7. As a general rule, the most common word will likely be the best choice and will often result in clearer, more concise expression. While words such as "observe," "assert," "comprehend," etc. have a place in formal academic writing, it can also be perfectly correct to use more common forms such as, "see," "suggest," and "understand." Try to be mindful of clarity in your writing and avoid obscure synonyms and flowery language that can make your intention unclear.