Answer 1

Problem-solving Skills for University Success Summative Peer Assignment

Chose a problem Imagine you work at an inner city health centre. Over half of
the population surrounding your health centre are in the
lowest 25% of the population in terms of income, and a
significant portion live in government housing. There are also a
large number of patients at your health centre who are recent
immigrants. When going back over patient records for the last
5 years, and comparing notes with other staff at the centre,
you realise that children in the area are presenting to you with
higher than normal levels of obesity. What is causing this spike
in childhood obesity in the area, and what can you do to
address it?

Understanding the problem

Choose a strategy for Define key words and phrases

understanding the problem

Explain the strategy, and why Find key words in assignment

you’ve chosen it

Apply your strategy for health centre, population lowest 25% of income, government
understanding the problem to housing, immigrants, higher than normal levels of obesity,
your chosen problem (Note: this spike, what can you do?
can be in the form of an image or
diagram, or a written reflection on
the action you took).

Strategise for a solution

Choose a strategy for developing Apply a formula

solutions to your chosen problem
Explain the strategy, and you’ve
chosen it
Explain the solution options you
have developed as a result of your
chosen strategy
Evaluate solutions
Come up with criteria for
evaluating solutions
Write in order of importance, and
give reasons for your answer
State your chosen solution and
justify according to criteria
I’ll do some research on the normal level of obese people in an
area and compare it to the number in this area because then
we can think of solutions. I think obesity in children basically
comes down to eating too much candy and ice cream so they
should learn to control their urges.
As I said before I think the children should learn to control
themselves. Probably parents are to blame for this because
they should have taught them good eating habits from a young
age. By the time the children are 8 or 9 it’s almost too late to
really change these habits, but some kids can change. So the
solution options would have to be:
1. Children learning to control themselves around things like
chocolate and ice cream
2. More exercise
The main criteria should be
1. How quickly the children can lose weight
2. How long they can keep it off for
3. How easy it is for the children to do
3
1
Exercise is not the best way to lose weight, as a lot of recent
research has shown. Here is an article from the New York
Times showing that diet is more important than exercise if you
want to lose weight
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/16/upshot/to-lose-weight-
eating-less-is-far-more-important-than-exercising-
more.html?_r=0

I used to be close to 20lbs overweight and I’m at the ideal

weight for my size now, and the main way I did that was
through cutting out soda and junk food and being careful
about what I ate. I hardly exercised at all, maybe just a bit of
jogging. So I think children learning how to control themselves
is the best option.