In the past, infectious diseases were the leading cause of death in the United States. Today, chronic diseases are the leading cause of illness, death, and health care spending. In this Discussion you explore the burden of one or more chronic diseases. You will have the opportunity to role play a health education scenario to practice your data evaluation, critical thinking, and communication skills. Your Instructor will divide the class into two groups. Be sure to ask if you do not see your group Assignments.

Role playing tips:

• Start the conversation early enough to help your colleagues and have a rich Discussion.
• Multiple individuals may discuss the same topic, but if there is already a good thread going about one topic (for example, diabetes in the health fair Discussion), perhaps another topic should be started to make the information more interesting and expansive. This will allow others to respond and add to the experience and information.
• Keep in mind that if you enter into an ongoing Discussion, you should be adding value (e.g., new information, new questions, etc.). If you do not have additional new information or questions, see what other threads were started and consider starting and/or participating in a new Discussion instead.
• Do try to maintain a cohesive and full conversation until a logical conclusion appears to be reached. Try not to leave your colleagues hanging without answers to their questions.
• If you are in the role of asking questions and you are not able to engage someone in your topic despite well-crafted questions, try a different topic or participate in an existing conversation.
• If you are in the role of answering questions, try to respond to people who have not yet had a response, in order to broaden the array of information that can be discussed.
• The goal is to learn how to research these topics, decide what information and data sources are most valid for the situation, and practice thinking critically and supporting what you say. Have fun!

Group 2: Health Fair Educator

You are a health professional working at a health fair. Review the questions that have been posted by the “Group 1” attendees. Choose at least one disease-related question that was posted to the Discussion by a Group 1 attendee to research. Provide at least one Group 1 attendee with useful information about the disease that they asked about. Some things you may consider as you discuss this topic with the Group 1 attendee: What are the best data sources to use for your own understanding of the topic, so that you can answer questions correctly? What are the best data sources to direct your Group 1 attendee to for their own understanding? Did you answer all of their questions clearly and accurately? As you present the information regarding the disease process, keep your audience in mind to ensure your explanation is clear, accurate, and helpful. Your goal is to evaluate the sources available to answer your Group 1 colleagues’ questions, interpret the data, and provide clear and accurate information that you can validate.