Showing papers in "Journal of American College Health in 2003"
TL;DR: Most college students are not meeting dietary and physical activity guidelines, suggesting the need for prevention interventions and increased understanding of overweight in college students.
Abstract: The authors surveyed 738 college students aged 18 to 27 years to assess overweight, obesity, dietary habits, and physical activity. They used BMI (body mass index) > or = 25 kg/m2 or BMI > or = 85th percentile and BMI > or = 30 kg/m2 or BMI > or = 95th percentile to estimate overweight and obesity in those aged or = 20 years, they used BMI > or = 25 kg/m2 and > or = 30 kg/m2. They found overweight rates of 21.6% using BMI directly and 16.2% using BMI percentile and obesity rates of 4.9% using BMI directly and 4.2% using BMI percentile. More than 69% of the participants reported < 5 servings of fruits and vegetables per day and more than 67% reported < 20 g of fiber per day; participants reported physical activity on fewer than 3 d/wk. Most college students are not meeting dietary and physical activity guidelines, suggesting the need for prevention interventions and increased understanding of overweight in college students.
556 citations
TL;DR: The proposition that accurate normative data, which counters the misperception of rape-supportive environments, can be a critical part of comprehensive campus efforts to catalyze and support men's development as women's social justice allies in preventing sexual violence against women is supported.
Abstract: The field of sexual assault prevention is shifting attention to educational interventions that address the role of men in ending violence against women. Recent studies document the often-misperceived norms men hold about other men's endorsement of rape-supportive attitudes and behaviors. The authors provide further evidence supporting the design of population-based social norms interventions to prevent sexual assault. Data from this study suggest that men underestimate the importance that most men and women place on consent and willingness of most men to intervene against sexual violence. In addition, men's personal adherence to only consensual activity and their willingness to act as women's allies are strongly influenced by their perceptions of other men's and women's norms. These findings support the proposition that accurate normative data, which counters the misperception of rape-supportive environments, can be a critical part of comprehensive campus efforts to catalyze and support men's development as women's social justice allies in preventing sexual violence against women.
408 citations
TL;DR: Significant increases in percentages of students' use of marijuana in the past 30 days, past year, and lifetime between 1993 and 2001 are found and drug prevention programs should emphasize heavy alcohol use and smoking.
Abstract: The authors examined changes in college students' illicit drug use, patterns of polydrug use, and the relationship between students' ages of initiation of substance use and later use of marijuana and other illicit drugs between 1993 and 2001. Data from 119 US colleges and universities in the Harvard School of Public Health College Alcohol Study were used in the study. They found significant increases in percentages of students' use of marijuana in the past 30 days (from 13% to 17%), past year (from 23% to 30%), and lifetime (from 41% to 47%) between 1993 and 2001, with most of the increase occurring between 1993 and 1997. Past 30-day use of other illicit drugs increased from 4% to 7% and past year use increased from 11% to 14%. More than 98% of marijuana and other illicit drug users used another substance. They also either smoked, were binge drinkers, and/or were users of another illicit drug. Drug prevention programs should emphasize heavy alcohol use and smoking and should start when students are in high school or earlier.
252 citations
TL;DR: Findings contradict the widely held opinion that gambling is prevalent among college students and suggest a disposition to take risks that is independent of the risk objects.
Abstract: The authors report findings from the first national survey of gambling among college students. They collected information from 10,765 students attending 119 scientifically selected colleges included in the 2001 Harvard School of Public Health College Alcohol Study (CAS), which indicated that 42% of responding students gambled in the last school year and 2.6% gambled weekly or more frequently. These findings contradict the widely held opinion based on previous studies that gambling is prevalent among college students. Previous studies used convenience samples that might have overestimated the risk for gambling problems. Male students and students of legal age (> 21 y) were more likely than others to gamble. Availability of gambling, measured by the number of types of gambling venues located in the schools' states, influenced their decisions to gamble. The concordance of characteristics associated with both gambling and binge drinking suggested a disposition to take risks that is independent of the...
212 citations
TL;DR: Students who reported drinking more frequently and consuming greater quantities of alcohol than others, having lifetime marijuana use, and initiating alcohol consumption between the ages of 14 and 16 years were significantly more likely to have participated in drinking games.
Abstract: Drinking games are associated with excess alcohol use and alcohol-related problems, yet it is unclear whether they are unique to the college environment or whether students come to college familiar with such games. The authors queried 1,252 students attending voluntary summer orientation programs about their experiences with drinking games. A majority (63%) indicated they had played drinking games and viewed them as a means to get drunk quickly and to socialize, control others, or get someone else drunk. Logistic regression analyses revealed that familiarity with drinking situations was associated with a greater likelihood of playing drinking games. Students who reported drinking more frequently and consuming greater quantities of alcohol than others, having lifetime marijuana use, and initiating alcohol consumption between the ages of 14 and 16 years were significantly more likely to have participated in drinking games. These findings demonstrate the importance of considering students' participation in drinking games when campus officials address alcohol use.
116 citations
TL;DR: College men and women do not accurately perceive their risks for developing heart disease, according to a preliminary investigation surveyed 470 undergraduates from 2 major 4-year institutions.
Abstract: The authors sought to assess the perception of risks for coronary heart disease (CHD) in college men and women. They surveyed 470 undergraduates from 2 major 4-year institutions who completed a questionnaire that measured perceived risks for heart disease. Sixty-eight percent of the respondents rated their risks as lower or much lower than those of their peers, indicating a clear optimistic bias. The research also revealed that the students who exercised regularly rated their risk of coronary disease lower than those who did not do so. In addition, women perceived a number of risk markers to be more potent or causative factors than men did. A significant number of participants did not comprehend commonly understood causal relationships associated with heart disease risk. The findings in this preliminary investigation suggest that college men and women do not accurately perceive their risks for developing heart disease.
105 citations
TL;DR: Both male and female university students' self-perceived QOL was more strongly associated with self-rated psychological than with physical health, and male students' ratings were higher than those of female students, whereas the males' average scores on self-enforced QOL were lower than that of females.
Abstract: The authors conducted a baseline investigation of male and female university students' health behaviors and self-rated health and quality of life (QOL). The study population consisted of all full-time, first-year students registered in a comprehensive study program offered at a Swedish university in autumn 1998. In spring 1999, the researchers sent self-administered questionnaires dealing with health status, lifestyle, and living conditions to the students at their home addresses. Male respondents used tobacco, were frequent drinkers, and engaged in binge drinking in larger proportions than expected by chance. A majority of the respondents rated their physical and psychological health as very good or good, but male students' ratings were higher than those of female students, whereas the males' average scores on self-perceived QOL were lower than those of females. Both male and female students' self-perceived QOL was more strongly associated with self-rated psychological than with physical health.
99 citations
TL;DR: A support group for Asian international students is described that was launched at a large midwestern university to help students feel at ease with American university life, address homesickness, language problems, and academic and social stressors.
Abstract: International students underuse counseling services, which are grounded in Western cultural values. The authors describe a support group for Asian international students that they launched at a large midwestern university to help students feel at ease with American university life, address homesickness, language problems, and academic and social stressors. Co-leaders created a safe and culturally sensitive atmosphere where the women could network, socialize, and address their issues. Group treatment offers many advantages over individual counseling and can enhance the health of international students.
91 citations
TL;DR: The authors recommend considering crypto as a cause of gastroenteritis, especially among farm-animal workers, and urge strict infectious disease precautions for those who attend to livestock.
Abstract: The authors describe an outbreak of cryptosporidiosis among students working with calves as part of their veterinary science technology program. After an off-campus provider identified an index case, school authorities requested cryptosporidium (crypto) as part of the stool ova and parasite examination of all students presenting to the college health center with significant gastroenteritis. Thirteen students submitted stool specimens that were examined for crypto; 7 were positive, and all were from veterinary science students. One of the calves used in the program also tested positive for crypto. All of the students were immunocompetent and recovered uneventfully. The outbreak was contained by strictly enforcing infectious-disease precautions in the calf barn. The authors recommend considering crypto as a cause of gastroenteritis, especially among farm-animal workers, and urge strict infectious disease precautions for those who attend to livestock.
86 citations
TL;DR: In both analyses, the variables that predicted college binge drinking largely revolved around gregarious socializing (eg, partying, having a social network of individuals who drank relatively heavily).
Abstract: Students' first semester on campus may set the stage for their alcohol use/misuse throughout college. The authors surveyed 274 randomly sampled first-semester freshmen at a large southwestern university on their past 2 weeks' binge drinking, their high school binge drinking, and psychosocial factors possibly associated with drinking. They conducted separate analyses among high school nonbinge drinkers (testing for predictors of college binge onset vs continued nonbinge drinking) and high school binge drinkers (testing for predictors of continued binge drinking in college vs desistance from drinking). In both analyses, the variables that predicted college binge drinking largely revolved around gregarious socializing (eg, partying, having a social network of individuals who drank relatively heavily). Gender was predictive only among high school nonbinge drinkers; women had a higher probability than did men of adopting binge drinking in college.
81 citations
TL;DR: Although this national sample of public universities had implemented some of the recommended policies, they must take further actions to comply fully with campus tobacco-control guidelines.
Abstract: To address the rise in tobacco use among college students, several national health organizations, including the American College Health Association, recommend that colleges enact smoking bans in and around all campus buildings, including student housing, and prohibit the sale, advertisement, and promotion of tobacco products on campus. Key informants at 50 US public universities, one from each state, were interviewed during the 2001/2002 academic year to assess the prevalence of these recommended policies. More than half (54%) of the colleges banned smoking in all campus buildings and student residences, 68% had no tobacco sales on campus, and 32% of the schools' newspapers did not accept tobacco advertising. Regional differences in adoption of these campus tobacco-control policies were present. Although this national sample of public universities had implemented some of the recommended policies, they must take further actions to comply fully with campus tobacco-control guidelines.
TL;DR: The African American students scored lower on drinking measures than the White students did, reported fewer negative consequences, and more regularly employed drinking-reduction strategies, with one exception-choosing a designated driver.
Abstract: The authors explored the differences between African American and White college students' drinking behaviors and their attitudes toward consequences, harm-reduction strategies, and health information sources. They collected data from a randomly selected sample of 1,110 students in a large public university to examine the effects of a high-risk drinking prevention intervention. In the current analysis, they compared African American and White students on indicators of high-risk drinking, drinking consequences, harm-reduction strategies, the sources that students typically used for health information, and the believability of those sources. The African American students scored lower on drinking measures than the White students did, reported fewer negative consequences, and more regularly employed drinking-reduction strategies, with one exception-choosing a designated driver. Both African and White respondents reported that their parents were their most frequent and usual sources of health-related i...
TL;DR: The prevalence of alcohol problems, high rates of informed consent and acceptance of counseling, and improved outcomes suggest that the ED is an appropriate venue for engaging students at high risk for alcohol problems.
Abstract: The authors evaluated a protocol to screen and provide brief interventions for alcohol problems to college students treated at a university hospital emergency department (ED). Of 2,372 drinkers they approached, 87% gave informed consent. Of those, 54% screened positive for alcohol problems (Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test score < 6). One half to two thirds of the students who screened positive drank 2 to 3 times a week, drank 7 or more drinks per typical drinking day, or had experienced alcohol dependence symptoms within the past year. Ninety-six percent of screen-positive students accepted counseling during their ED visit. Three quarters of those questioned at 3-month follow-up reported that counseling had been helpful and that they had decreased their alcohol consumption. The prevalence of alcohol problems, high rates of informed consent and acceptance of counseling, and improved outcomes suggest that the ED is an appropriate venue for engaging students at high risk for alcohol problems.
TL;DR: Until childhood and adolescent vaccination can produce immune cohorts of young adults, college-based hepatitis immunization can reduce disease transmission in a cost-effective manner.
Abstract: Hepatitis B immunization is recommended for all American children, and hepatitis A immunization is recommended for children who live in areas with elevated disease rates. Because hepatitis A and B occur most commonly in young adults, the authors examined the cost effectiveness of college-based vaccination. They developed epidemiologic models to consider infection risks and disease progression and then compared the cost of vaccination with economic, longevity, and quality of life benefits. Immunization of 100,000 students would prevent 1,403 acute cases of hepatitis A, 929 cases of hepatitis B, and 144 cases of chronic hepatitis B. Hepatitis B vaccination would cost the health system $7,600 per quality-adjusted life year (QALY) gained but would reduce societal costs by 6%. Hepatitis A/B vaccination would cost the health system dollar 8,500 per QALY but would reduce societal costs by 12%. Until childhood and adolescent vaccination can produce immune cohorts of young adults, college-based hepatitis immunization can reduce disease transmission in a cost-effective manner.
TL;DR: Depression was directly related to severity of participants' eating dysfunction; the eating-disordered group had scores consistent with clinical depression and 3 facets of attachment to fathers significantly differentiated the 3 groups.
Abstract: The authors examined the roles of depression and attachment to fathers in college women's eating dysfunctions. Three-hundred six undergraduate women completed (1) a diagnostic measure of eating dysfunctions that categorized them as asymptomatic, symptomatic but not eating disordered, or eating disordered; (2) 3 dimensional measures of attachment to fathers; and (3) a dimensional measure of depression. Depression was directly related to severity of participants' eating dysfunction; the eating-disordered group had scores consistent with clinical depression. After controlling for depression, 3 facets of attachment to fathers significantly differentiated the 3 groups.
TL;DR: Innovative outreach programs to screen a majority of at-risk college students should be developed.
Abstract: Chlamydia trachomatis infection in college students has not undergone a detailed large-scale evaluation. The authors undertook a cross-sectional study of 4,086 students enrolled on the campuses of California State University, Sacramento, and 3 local community colleges from fall 2000 through spring 2002. They used an outreach screening model to determine the presence of infection by testing urine for chlamydial DNA by polymerase chain reaction. Participants completed demographic and behavioral risk questionnaires and a chlamydia knowledge assessment. Overall, 3.4% of participants tested positive for infection. Screening of male and female students was evenly distributed and incidence rates for males (3.03%) and females (3.78%) were similar Variables associated with significantly increased risk were younger than 25 years, ethnicity other than White, more than one sexual partner in the preceding year or a new partner in the preceding 2 months, and current symptoms. Innovative outreach programs to screen a majority of at-risk college students should be developed.
TL;DR: In this article, an advertising campaign to communicate the availability and desirability of using Sexual Assault Nurse Examination (SANE) services was presented. But, they did not report on the effectiveness of the advertising campaign.
Abstract: The authors report on an advertising campaign to communicate the availability and desirability of using Sexual Assault Nurse Examination (SANE) services. They used social marketing precepts to develop posters to educate college students about using SANE as a health service and as an arm of prosecution. After 2 advertising campaigns, they conducted an anonymous survey of 1,051 college students. The findings indicated that posters placed in residence halls and public bathrooms reached students, produced a statistically significant increase in students' understanding of SANE services, and were significantly associated with their hypothetical encouragement of others to use SANE. Gender mediated some results. Posters placed in private viewing spaces were found to be a viable way to communicate information about SANE. Funding to combat violence against women on campus should be aimed at increasing students' access to SANE and should include the costs of advertising the program.
TL;DR: It is concluded that immigration is associated with health protective behavior in the domains of sexual behavior and physical activity among the Black college students attending this particular institution, however, in the domain of dietary intake, immigration status was associated with increased risk in these Black collegeStudents.
Abstract: The authors administered the National College Health Risk Behavior Survey to 1,219 college students who were attending a historically Black college located in New York City. They assessed the US-born Black students and Black students who emigrated to the United States for differences in risky sexual behaviors, risky dietary behaviors, and physical inactivity. They used bivariate and multiple regression analyses to analyze the data and observed significant differences between the US-born and non-US-born students in the behavioral domains of risky sexual behaviors (p = .003), risky dietary behaviors (p = .001), and physical inactivity (p = .010). They conclude that immigration is associated with health protective behavior in the domains of sexual behavior and physical activity among the Black college students attending this particular institution. However, in the domain of dietary intake, immigration status was associated with increased risk in these Black college students.
TL;DR: The project is working with 7 institutions to build collaborative relationships between student health services and African American, Latino, and GLBTQ student organizations and to develop culturally competent HIV-prevention messages and strategies.
Abstract: or the past F Association 6 years, the American College Health I (ACHA) has had 2 cooperative agreements from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) Division of Adolescent and School Health. Both cooperative agreements focus on the prevention of HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) among college students, particularly for students of color and gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (GLBTQ) students. As the project directors for these cooperative agreements, we have worked with staff members from more than 100 campuses across the country during the last 3 years to provide safe and welcoming environments for these students. Staff members from the first cooperative agreement, ACHA's Building Healthy Campus Communities project, have been working with ACHA institutional members selected through an application process to (1) conduct a cultural competency needs assessment, ( 2 ) develop a report of campus strengths and weaknesses, and (3) develop and implement a strategic plan to improve cultural competency within the health service and among individual providers. In addition, the project is working with 7 institutions to build collaborative relationships between student health services and African American, Latino, and GLBTQ student organizations and to develop culturally competent HIV-prevention messages and strategies. ACHA's second cooperative agreement, College Students in High-Risk Situations, focuses primarily on reaching GLBTQ students on campus. During the past 4 years, project staff members have conducted more
TL;DR: This approach to prevention of college alcohol abuse, developed and heavily marketed since the 1990s, assumes that many students err in believing that “most other” students drink heavily, and if these misperceived drinking norms were corrected by informing students that the majority do not drink excessively, their drinking should decline.
Abstract: wo influential formulations concerning college alcohol problems emphasize seemingly conflicting T views about the magnitude of college alcohol abuse. One view,’ consistent with images of college drinking portrayed in popular movies such as Animal House, insists that binge drinking is pervasive and shows no sign of decline. Widely cited surveys of large samples of students from more than 140 institutions of higher learning across the nation in the College Alcohol Survey (CAS)* conducted by the Harvard University School of Public Health in 4 different years between 1993 and 2001 showed that just under half (44%) of students surveyed had engaged in what they termed binge drinking or what others refer to as heavy episodic drinking (5+ drinks for men and 4+ for women during a single drinking occa~ion)~ during the 2 weeks before the survey. Looking at these same findings from the opposite direction, you could note that the majority (56%) do not binge when they drink. In fact, the other main focus in current research on college drinking, social norms programs? uses that emphasis. This approach to prevention of college alcohol abuse, developed and heavily marketed since the 1990s, assumes that many students err in believing that “most other” students drink heavily. It is argued that if these misperceived drinking norms were corrected by informing students that the majority do not drink excessively, their drinking should decline. These 2 contrasting perspectives strongly influenced the ways that institutions of higher learning have estimated the scope of college-student alcohol problems and acted to lower them. One view sees the surveyed student body as “half drunk‘’ whereas the other sees it as “half sober.” The
TL;DR: Tailored interventions that alter alcohol expectancies may facilitate early cessation from EHD, and others may be predisposed to moderate their alcohol use.
Abstract: The author surveyed 788 undergraduates at a large public university (overall response rate 54%) to (1) estimate the proportion of college students who cease engaging in a pattern of episodic heavy drinking (EHD) and (2) identify individual and contextual factors associated with early cessation. He used a staging algorithm to classify respondents into 4 stages of EHD cessation. Of the 60% who had engaged in EHD, 64% continued to drink heavily with no intention of stopping, 12% continued to drink heavily but were thinking about stopping, 14% had ceased temporarily, and 9% had ceased permanently. Students who had stopped EHD perceived more risks and fewer benefits associated with alcohol misuse, but they did not differ in their perceptions of normative alcohol use on campus. Many collegiate heavy drinkers cease EHD before graduation, and others may be predisposed to moderate their alcohol use. Tailored interventions that alter alcohol expectancies may facilitate early cessation from EHD.
TL;DR: It is suggested that student health service clinicians should assess students' cultural beliefs and individualize healthcare for students from different countries.
Abstract: The authors surveyed 243 urban public university students who were born in the United States, China, and India to compare the health beliefs of the China-born, India-born, and US-born students. Although the China- and India-born students shared beliefs in many preventive and therapeutic practices of Western medicine with the US-born students, they retained some of their traditional health beliefs. This suggests that student health service clinicians should assess students' cultural beliefs and individualize healthcare for students from different countries.
TL;DR: The authors claim that students define problem drinking not in terms of quantity, but rather by the outcome, and suggest using a term that has shared meaning with students to describe the drinking behavior that results in undesirable or unintended consequences.
Abstract: Educators and researchers strive to use terms that reflect a replicable measure of behavior. A term commonly used to describe drinking of a problematic nature is binge drinking. Binge drinking defines behavior by a number of drinks of an alcoholic beverage consumed in a space of time. The authors argue that the term does not describe drinking behavior that students believe is problematic. They claim that students define problem drinking not in terms of quantity, but rather by the outcome (and occasionally by frequency), and attribute different negative connotations to the term binge. They suggest using a term that has shared meaning with students, such as dangerous drinking, to describe the drinking behavior that results in undesirable or unintended consequences.
TL;DR: This article found that students were more likely to desire alcohol availability at campus events and to drink on more days throughout the year than at campuses where students had greater misperceptions of alcohol use.
Abstract: Proponents of social norms approaches maintain that correcting misperceptions of alcohol use among college students may reduce drinking and its consequences. The author used aggregate campus-level data from the Nationwide Campuses Study to test this hypothesis. He defined the misperceptions ratio as the ratio of the frequency of the “average student's” perceived alcohol use to the frequency of self-use at each campus. Each of the 57 colleges reported misperceptions ratios greater than unity. At campuses where students had more accurate perceptions of alcohol use, students were more likely to desire alcohol availability at campus events and to drink on more days throughout the year than at campuses where students had greater misperceptions of alcohol use. The author found no data to support the preferential use of social norms programming on campuses with high levels of self-reported alcohol use or binge drinking. These findings raise questions about potentially unexpected and unintended effects o...
TL;DR: The findings underscore the need for targeted prevention programs among this high-risk population of college students attending a university on the US-Mexico border with other students.
Abstract: Alcohol abuse is a serious problem for students on college campuses. The authors conducted a cross-sectional study to (1) compare measures of alcohol-risk behaviors among college students attending a university on the US-Mexico border with other students and (2) identify factors associated with risk behaviors among border students. They used a self-administered survey to collect data from 286 freshman and sophomore students. Rates of binge drinking were higher among study respondents than among respondents in a national survey of freshman and sophomore college students (46% vs 42% to 45%, respectively). Drinking in high school and drinking in Mexico were significantly associated with all outcomes (binge drinking, drinking and driving, and riding with a drinker). The findings underscore the need for targeted prevention programs among this high-risk population.
TL;DR: Education about the benefits of meningococcal vaccine before students' arrival on campus increased both the number of immunized students and the overall immunization rate among students.
Abstract: The authors measured the impact of educational efforts on the number of college students who received meningococcal vaccine. First-year Brown University students from the classes of 2004 (n = 1,562) and 2005 (n = 1,518) received educational vaccine materials before they arrived on campus, whereas students from the class of 2003 (n = 1,441) did not. Students in the class of 2003, 13% (n = 184) of whom had received vaccine before their arrival on campus, served as the baseline. These educational efforts by the college health services before students arrived on campus increased the number of students immunized before campus arrival to 46% (n = 724) for the class of 2004, and 60% (n = 913) for the class of 2005. Education about the benefits of meningococcal vaccine before students' arrival on campus increased both the number of immunized students and the overall immunization rate among students.
TL;DR: The task force developed a National Survey on Health Promotion and Education in Institutions of Higher Education and mailed the survey to a stratified random sample of 600 ACHA member institutions as well as to 97 key “best-practice health promotion leaders.”
Abstract: To review and analyze the scope of practice of health promotion services and draft standards of quality indicators for higher education communities, the American College Health Association (ACHA) initiated a Task Force on Health Promotion in Higher Education in May 1996. Members of the task force developed a National Survey on Health Promotion and Education in Institutions of Higher Education and mailed the survey to a stratified random sample of 600 ACHA member institutions, as well as to 97 key "best-practice health promotion leaders". The larger sample produced a 75.3% response rate, and 90.7% of the key informants returned usable surveys. The authors report selected findings from both groups that chronicle the state of health promotion practice in higher education at the close of the 20th century. The task force used the findings to establish a data-driven framework for the Year 2001 Standards of Practice for Health Promotion in Higher Education.
TL;DR: A collaborative partnership forged between faculty and student affairs staff to improve student health at a large urban university is described, examining skills and reward structures of each constituency and the stages of the collaboration in the context of 2 theoretical models.
Abstract: The authors describe a collaborative partnership forged between faculty and student affairs staff to improve student health at a large urban university. They examine skills and reward structures of each constituency and the stages of the collaboration in the context of 2 theoretical models. A comprehensive data collection and dissemination process in the campus community provided goals for the initial stage of the partnership, leading to implementation of campus initiatives that use the reciprocal skills of each stakeholder. Outcomes of the collaboration included (1) a working relationship between faculty and student affairs staff, (2) increased dialogue with high-level administrators, (3) more coordinated campus efforts to decrease high-risk drinking, (4) use of outcome measures for implementing and evaluating health programs, and (5) an opportunity for interdisciplinary research. The authors offer suggestions for implementing the process on other campuses.
TL;DR: “The breaking down of the health of students especially in the spring of the year involving the necessity of leaving college in many instances and crippling the energies of not a few who remain is, in my opinion, wholly unnecessary if proper measures could be taken to prevent it.
Abstract: tudents of our colleges have bodies which need care and culture as well as the intellectual and moral powers and which need this care at the same time with higher education. The breaking down of the health of students especially in the spring of the year involving the necessity of leaving college in many instances and crippling the energies . . . of not a few who remain is, in my opinion, wholly unnecessary if proper measures could be taken to prevent it.’’l(p3’) These words, written by William A. Steams, president of Amherst College in 1856, represent the beginning not only of college health services in the United States but, by extension, the root of the profession of athletic training. Exercise, it was thought, was the best means of improving students’ health. Thus, it is not surprising that college health developed as an integral part of the growth of departments of physical education and hygiene in most colleges and that physicians were commonly employed as either chairs or senior staff members in these departments. In 1859, Amherst College created a department of physical education and hygiene. Credit must be given to one particular member of the board, Dr. Nathan Allen, who in describing the program specified: