How to write a windshield survey paper

Windshield Survey Written Assignment

Conduct a windshield survey to identify a population and its primary health concern. Develop a 3–5-page report that explains demographic changes for a population and describes the health disparities and social determinants of health that can affect the population.

**Central Florida United States community**

Requirements
Conduct the windshield survey, using the template attached.
Use the template as a guide to write a report for your team. If possible, look at other written documents used within your organization. How are they formatted? Follow that format as closely as possible, making sure you still use APA guidelines for your in-text references, citations, and reference page.
Based on your observations and notes from your survey experience, write a report that includes the following:

Describe, briefly, the neighborhood or community you observed (overall condition, types of spaces and businesses, evidence of services, and so forth).
Describe a vulnerable or diverse population you observed living within the neighborhood or community.
Now you will need to do some research on the population you described:

Explain how the demographics for the population have changed over the past 5–10 years. Note: This information should be readily available through the United States Census Bureau, similar state Web sites, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, or other professional sites. Be sure your information is current.
Describe the most prevalent health risks for the population. For example, if your population is senior citizens, then the health risks might be diabetes and loss of mobility. Include statistics on the health risks, such as frequency of occurrence in the population and number of deaths per year in the population.
Identify the health disparities and social determinants of health that can affect the population. In other words, what will you need to overcome to develop a successful health promotion and disease prevention program for the population?
Your completed assessment should be 3–5 pages in length, not including the title page and reference page. Support your information with references to at least three professional, scholarly, or government resources, and follow current APA guidelines for your in-text citations and references.

Additional Requirements
Include a title page and reference page. The completed assessment should be 3–5 pages in length, not including the title page and reference page.
Reference at least three current scholarly, professional, or government resources.
Use current APA format for citations and references.
Use Times New Roman font, 12 point.
Double spaced
Attached is an example of a well graded paper as well as an example of a windshield survey to use as a reference.

This paper addresses the question of diversity in health care by focusing on the health

risks and health care needs of those living in East Harlem, New York. The paper will first

provide an overview and statistical information about the population demographics of the East

Harlem community. It will then discuss the findings from a recent windshield survey of the

community. From this information, the demographic changes for the minority population in the

community will be explained. This will be followed by a description of health risks and health

care needs for the minority population and an examination of the prevalence and impact of

different illnesses on the same population. Finally, there will be an explanation of the health

disparities and the social determinants of health that can affect the vulnerable population in this

community.

An Overview of East Harlem

East Harlem, also called Spanish Harlem or El Barrio is home to many immigrant

communities including one of the largest Hispanic communities in New York City with a

population of nearly 120,000. It also has a small Italian-American population. The majority of

the population is Hispanic (50%), and the rest of the population consists of African-Americans

(31%), whites (12%), and Asians (6%). The median age in the East Harlem community ranges

from 25–44 years. Around 22% of the population is between 0 and 17 years of age, and 12% of

the population is more than 65 years old. The average life expectancy of people in this

community is 76 years.

Surveillance Survey of the East Harlem Community

A windshield survey will provide a detailed picture of the people living in the area (New

York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene [NYCDOHMH], 2015).

Comment [A1]: Great intro! This lets the reader know exactly what to

expect in the paper.

Comment [A2]: You did a nice job of describing the overall

neighborhood.

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Housing. Around 76% of the homes in East Harlem are renter-occupied homes with one

or more maintenance defects; that include water leaks, the presence of mice or rats, cracks and

holes in the wall, inadequate heating, peeling paint, and toilet breakdowns. The community

consists of residents from a low socioeconomic background and cannot afford better housing.

Open Space. According to a study by the group New Yorkers for Parks, East Harlem has

1.2 acres of open space for every 1,000 residents, which is less than the recommended minimum

of 2.5 acres. Adequate open space allows children to play and exercise and offers parks for

relaxation which can improve the physical health of children and aging seniors.

Pollution. Unfortunately, East Harlem has a high concentration of fine particulate

matter—one of the harmful air pollutants in New York City. Air pollution is a leading cause of

health issues for people in East Harlem, especially among children, senior residents, and those

with preexisting health issues such as asthma and other respiratory ailments (NYCDOHMH,

2015).

Education. The neighborhood has many private, public, and charter schools. However,

an acute lack of resources in school and poor family life cause a majority of children to drop out

of school at an early age. Therefore, East Harlem consists of a substantial section of adults (26%)

who have not graduated from high school.

Culture and religion. From the first wave of Italian immigrants in the 19th century to

the tidal wave of musicians in the “mambo era,” East Harlem has set the stage for arts and

culture for over a hundred years. Because of its Italian-American population, East Harlem is still

influenced by southern Italian food, tradition, and ceremony. East Harlem has residents who are

followers of different religions ranging from Christianity and Islam to Scientology, and they have

their own places of worship in the area.

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Health services. East Harlem has several health centers in its community. Even with the

presence of these health centers, the residents of East Harlem do not have easy access to health

care primarily because they come from low-income families and lack health insurance.

Transportation and businesses. East Harlem has a wide range of business institutions,

one of the most famous being the East Harlem Chamber of Commerce. East Harlem is also

known for its well-run public transit system.

Hispanic Culture in East Harlem

East Harlem is a predominantly Hispanic neighborhood, due to immigration of Puerto

Ricans, Latin, South, and Central Americans. About a third of the Hispanic populations in East

Harlem are college graduates, while approximately 26% of the population has not finished high

school. These subgroups face barriers due to lack of language fluency. This language barrier can

lead to miscommunication and prevent Hispanic populations from accessing important health

education material and regular medical care, which in turn make them a vulnerable population

(NYCDOHMH, 2015).

Demographic Changes in East Harlem

Hispanics and black residents comprise 81% of the population in this area, with about a

quarter of the residents being foreign-born. Around 31% of the residents in East Harlem live

under the Federal Poverty Level, making it the twelfth most underprivileged community in New

York. One out of eight East Harlem residents aged 16 and above is unemployed. More than half

the residents use nearly 30% of their overall income on rent.

Over the last decade, East Harlem has observed a large wave of gentrification, a process

of renovation and reconstruction of an area leading to an influx of affluent families in that area.

The impact of gentrification takes place through increased rent burdens instead of direct

Comment [A3]: You did a good job of discussing East Harlem and the

transportation, health services, culture,

religion, education, housing and

available land.

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displacements—rents have increased by more than 40% in East Harlem. This has resulted in a

deeper class divide between the rich and poor (Florida, 2016).

Health Risks and Health Care Needs in East Harlem

Due to poor diets, a serious health risk faced by residents of East Harlem is obesity,

which is a leading cause of diabetes and heart disease. Cancer and heart disease are the leading

causes of death for people in East Harlem. Smoking is the main cause of preventable death in

NYC and also the cause behind many illnesses including stroke, heart disease, lung cancer, and

emphysema. More than 25% of East Harlem residents smoke, which puts its residents at a higher

risk of suffering from cancer and heart diseases than any other community in the state of New

York.

Substance use is a major social and health issue in low-income neighborhoods due to

their inability to cope with their low quality of life. Limited educational, housing, and

employment opportunities combined with the availability of drugs contribute to drug and alcohol

addiction (NYCDOHMH, 2015).

Two other health risks in this neighborhood are asthma among children and HIV. East

Harlem has the sixth-highest rate of asthma hospitalization among children aged 5 to 14 in the

state of New York and death due to AIDS in East Harlem neighborhood is thrice as high

compared to the rest of New York City.

While there are several challenges, health care in East Harlem can be improved by

providing cultural competency training to health care professionals in language skills, cross-

cultural communication skills, and health literacy strategies which will help them earn the trust

of the population (NYCDOHMH, 2015).

Comment [A4]: Very nice job in this section. You described the

demographics very well and also

identified the reasons for the change.

Comment [A5]: There seem to be many health disparities in East Harlem.

The prevalence of various diseases

was discussed.

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Health Disparities and the Social Determinants of Health in a Diverse Population

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the social determinants of health

(SDH) are defined as circumstances within which persons live and work (World Health

Organization, n.d.). The financially deprived residents struggle to meet their basic needs; have

scarce occasions to achieve constructive goals; experience more undesirable life events such as

marital trouble, joblessness, and monetary loss; and must deal with discrimination,

marginalization, segregation, and helplessness. Owing to these stressors, people with low

socioeconomic status are at a higher risk of obesity, diabetes, substance abuse issues, violence,

and crime.

The existence of disparities in access to health care has been recognized for a while in the

United States. Recently, the U.S. government has started many initiatives to address the social

determinants of health. Medicaid, a government insurance scheme for the underprivileged, has

also developed several initiatives that relate health care to wider social needs. An important

project under this initiative is the Harlem Children’s Zone (HCZ), which aims to improve the

health of the Harlem community through a wide range of social, health, and family programs.

This project has reported a 92% acceptance rate for its programs (Heiman & Artiga, 2015).

Conclusion

East Harlem is known for its diverse population and rich cultural history. However, given

that most of the residents in the area are poor and come from marginalized backgrounds, they

face different health risks and have difficulties accessing health care. Reducing these health

inequities requires policymakers, health professionals, researchers and community groups to

work together for systemic change. Framing health policies with the help of the social

determinants of health will enable the poor residents of East Harlem access better health care.

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References

Florida, R. (2016). Where New York is gentrifying and where it isn't. The Atlantic

CityLab. http://citylab.com/housing/2016/05/looking-back-at-gentrification-in-new-

york-city/482310/

Heiman, H. J., & Artiga, S. (2015). Beyond health care: The role of social determinants in

promoting health and health equity. The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. Retrieved

from http://kff.org/disparities-policy/issue-brief/beyond-health-care-the-role-of-social-

determinants-in-promoting-health-and-health-equity/

New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. (2015). Manhattan community

district 11: East Harlem. Retrieved from

https://www1.nyc.gov/assets/doh/downloads/pdf/data/2015chp-mn11.pdf

New Yorkers for Parks. (2012). East Harlem open space index. Retrieved from

http://ny4p.org/research/osi/EastHarlemOSI.pdf

World Health Organization. (n.d.). Social determinants of health. Retrieved from

http://who.int/social_determinants/en/