Running Head: MECOSTA: ALCOHOL AND COMMUNITY HEALTH

Mecosta: Alcohol and Community Health

Staci Simonelli, Kendall Dyke, Alyssa Oetman,
Wyatt Withers, Daphne Fitzpatrick, & Jason Couturier
Ferris State University

MECOSTA: ALCOHOL AND COMMUNITY HEALTH

Mecosta: Alcohol and Community Health

Health disparities are of common occurrence within the United States. Much can be
learned about an individual community through simple observations such as a windshield survey.
An individual may also assess a communitys health by turning to information provided by the
from the health departments at the local and state level.
Assessment of Data in District #10
Located in the northern lower peninsula of Michigan, Mecosta county is one of the ten
counties that make up the District #10 Health Department. The other nine counties in the
department include: Crawford, Kalkaska, Lake, Manistee, Mason, Missaukee, Oceana,
Newaygo, and Wexford. Like many of the other counties in this district, Mecosta county is
comprised of mostly small rural communities. Many of the individuals in these rural
communities all share similar health disparities.
According to District Health Department #10 (2014), 22.3% of individuals in the county
report having no access to health care due to cost. Almost 21% of these same individuals report
having no primary health care provider. One of the most prevalent and concerning health issues
to be noted in Mecosta county is the use of alcohol. An astonishing 24.8% of individuals in
Mecosta county reported having participated in binge drinking episodes, over 7% more
individuals than the other counties in District Health Department #10. That number is also nearly
5% higher than that of the state average, (District Health Department #10, 2014). These numbers
show that within the community of Mecosta alcohol use among individuals is truly a health
disparity in which a remedy must be sought after.
While underage youth may drink less often than adults, they typically drink larger
quantities than adults when they do drink, and youth aged 12 to 20 years consume approximately

MECOSTA: ALCOHOL AND COMMUNITY HEALTH

two-thirds of their alcohol during binge drinking occasions, (Ziming et al., 2015). These
underage youth, (Ziming et al., 2015) individuals, along with adults of legal drinking age, are
the most exposed to alcohol within the county.
Analysis of Assessment Findings
Within the county, there are a number of different facilities which serve and advertise
alcohol to all who pass by. These advertisements are seen by individuals of all ages, not only
those of legal drinking age. This kind of propaganda, while maybe not explicitly doing so, does
encourage those individuals younger than 21 to consume alcohol by making it seem like the
social norm. Many community businesses, such as gas stations, restaurants, and bars all advertise
the consumption of alcohol on the interior and exterior of the buildings. This continual exposure
leaves both adults and adolescents feeling as if alcohol is a required part of any social gathering.
With young adults [having] the highest rates of substance use of any age group, (Croff &
Clapp, 2015) it is imperative that the nursing community take action to help combat this major
health disparity.
Community-Focused Nursing Diagnosis
A nursing diagnosis sets the groundwork for community health nursings goal of
reducing health risks by identifying them and the factors that appear to sustain them, (Muecke,
1984). This community nursing overview was used to help develop the nursing diagnosis
regarding alcohol consumption in Mecosta county.
Increased risk for alcohol abuse related illness and injury in the adult and adolescent
populations related to the availability and acceptance of alcohol use as evidenced by the
prevalence of alcohol use within the community.

MECOSTA: ALCOHOL AND COMMUNITY HEALTH

This nursing diagnosis helps to direct the interventions that will be put into place to help
lower the overall rate of alcohol consumption in both adults and adolescents within the
communities in Mecosta.
SMART Goal
In aiming to rid a community of a specific health disparity, it is imperative to compose
together a list of goals. One goal that would be important to set for Mecosta county would be to
reduce the amount of alcohol consumed by 10% in adolescents and adults. This goal of reducing
the overall consumption of alcohol in both adults and adolescents coordinates with that of
Healthy People 2020. By doing so, the hope would be to reduce alcohol related health risks
within a time span of 5 years. Interventions to provoke a reduction in the use of alcohol among
the adolescent population will focus on development of community based programs.
Intervention
There are many ways in which the use of alcohol in adolescents could be reduced.
Development of after school programs would encourage students to actively participate in
programs that are developmentally appropriate, as opposed to drinking. These programs could
range anywhere from art classes to club baseball at the local baseball diamond. Encouraging
adolescents to be involved in activities outside of school will help to reduce the rate of alcohol
use in that population.
Another way to encourage the reduction of alcohol use in adolescents is to encompass the
entire family in the affair. Older siblings provide vicarious learning experiences for their
younger siblings, and the sibling relationship is one mechanism through which younger siblings
learn about [alcohol] use and behaviors, (Kothari et al., 2014). One option that could be
implemented is a community filed day, with some of the races focusing on sibling pairs, such as

MECOSTA: ALCOHOL AND COMMUNITY HEALTH

a three-legged race competition. By including all family members in these programs, the younger
adolescents are learning from their siblings that alcohol is not the only option.
There are some studies [that] have indicated that parental influence is the strongest
precursor of adolescent substance use among family variables. (Kothari, Sorenson, Band, &
Snyder, 2014) With this knowledge, it also seems practical to develop a weekly family program
to encourage more alcohol free family bonding. These opportunities could be activities such as
community movie nights or potluck picnics. Parental attitudes and parent modeling of alcohol
use have shown to be strongly linked to alcohol use of their children, (Kothari et al., 2014).
Including the entire family in on the activities also helps the parents find alternatives to alcohol
use, which in turn, helps to lower the rate of alcohol use in their children.
Education classes and support groups will also be established for those individuals who
have a history with alcohol abuse and need extra help and motivation to abolish their addiction.
Local health care providers will be asked to help coordinate the facilitation of these classes and
support groups.
Evaluation
All in all, communities across the entire United States are battling a number of different
health disparities. The prevalence of alcohol use among adolescents in Mecosta county is one of
the most imperative disparities nurses need to combat within the community. The overwhelming
presence of alcohol and alcohol related propaganda aids in adolescent immersion into the world
of alcohol use. Nurses can help to lower the number of individuals exposed to alcohol by helping
to develop a number of different community programs focusing on promoting alcohol free
activities.

MECOSTA: ALCOHOL AND COMMUNITY HEALTH

Evaluation of program success will be measured with the use of school surveys in the
adolescent population. Students will be given a biannual survey over the course of the five year
goal. The surveys will ask questions regarding personal, peer, and family alcohol consumption.
Surveys focusing on alcohol consumption in the adult population will also be developed and
dispersed to healthcare facilities biannually as well. The answers from both the student and adult
surveys will then be compiled and analyzed to determine if the overall goal of a 10% reduction
in alcohol consumption has been met. Information regarding alcohol sales over the course of the
five year plan will also be monitored to look for trends in alcohol sales and consumption.
The road to reducing the overall rate of alcohol consumption in Mecosta county for both
adults and adolescents will be a challenging, but ultimately worthwhile for the wellbeing of the
community.

MECOSTA: ALCOHOL AND COMMUNITY HEALTH

References
Croff, J. M., & Clapp, J. D. (2015). Modifying heathcare system alcohol interventions for the
high-risk drinking environment: Theory in practice. Journal of Alcohol & Drug
Education, 59(1), 39-56 18p.
District Health Department #10. (2014). Health profile chartbook 2014: Mecosta county.
Retrieved from http://dhd10.org/files/Chartbook_2014_Mecosta.pdf
Kothari, B. H., Sorenson, P., Bank, L., & Snyder, J. (2014). Alcohol and substance use in
adolescence and young adulthood: The role of siblings. Journal of Family Social Work,
17(4), 324-343 20p. doi:10.1080/10522158.2014.924457
Muecke, M. (1984). Community health diagnosis in nursing. Public Health Nursing, 1(1), 23-35.
Ziming, X., Blanchette, J. G., Nelson, T. F., Nguyen H., T., Hadland, S. E., Oussayef, N. L., & ...
Naimi, T. S. (2015). Youth drinking in the United States: Relationships with alcohol
policies and adult drinking. Pediatrics, 136(1), 18-27 10p. doi:10.1542/peds.2015-0537