December 15, 2018

Supporting Sustainability for the Backpack Program at Concord International Elementary

Student nurses: Andrea O’Neil, Holli Machmer, and Kathleen Norman

Nurse Faculty: Hilary Jauregui, DNP, MN, RN

The neighborhood of South Park was once a farmland that supplied Seattle’s markets. Today, it is a community of approximately 4,000 residents that is surrounded by encroaching industry. Due to environmental and social determinants of health, South Park has one of the lowest life expectancy rates in King County. Despite the challenges they face, community members are a tight knit, strong force of advocacy. A team of three nursing students from University of Washington chose to work with Concord International Elementary School, a sub-community within South Park. The school participates in the Backpack Program, which mitigates food insecurity by providing Concord students with food for the weekend. The nursing students’ overarching goal of bringing sustainability and efficiency to the program was achieved through four objectives. By focusing on reduction of time spent getting the food to the school, improvement of community outreach, aggregation of outside resources related to food security, and simplification of the program outline, the nursing students hope to bring sustainability to the Backpack Program for years to come. Although the team will not be able to evaluate the long-term impact, the strategies they implemented were well received by the community.

Read the full report here!