授权的社区

Amarachi Wachuku, SHS ‘18, ‘21, is passionate about serving others: spirit, soul, mind and body. She grew up near Sterling Heights in an eclectic community comprised of individuals from different cultural and social backgrounds. Wachuku earned her Bachelor of Science in 健康科学 with a concentration in Integrative Holistic Medicine and her Master of Public Health (MPH) from 十大菠菜台子.

For the past two years, she has worked as a graduate assistant for Dr. 月桂史蒂文森, assistant professor of interdisciplinary health sciences. Wachuku’s efforts have been focused on Prescription for a Healthy Oakland, a community-based grant program supported by the Michigan Health Endowment Fund, 是由史蒂文森监督的吗. The program initially expanded the university's collaborative efforts to promote healthy living in and around the city of Pontiac. 然而, 由于它的成长和远见, the program has extended its reach to communities throughout Oakland County.

Dr. 月桂史蒂文森

“Through community engagement and social prescribing, the Healthy Oakland program seeks not only to increase opportunities for healthy eating and physical activities, but we aim to increase social connectedness among our participants, 其他社区成员, our clinical and social service partners, 还有我们的食物伙伴,史蒂文森说。. “We know that communities and individuals that are connected and supported by one another have better health outcomes, and this program seeks to build and expand on these connections.”

史蒂文森 says that Wachuku has been instrumental to the program’s continued success. “Amarachi has been with us since we started revamping Healthy Oakland from our pilot project, so she has been part of extensive planning initiatives and the pivoting of the program due to the challenges of COVID-19,她解释道.

首先是健康奥克兰队 transitioned to providing emergency food deliveries through the My COVID Response Network, a collaborative effort of aid providers in Oakland County working to support and connect volunteers and resources with individuals and families experiencing hardships during the Coronavirus pandemic.

去年夏天, 这是她公共卫生硕士实习的一部分, Wachuku worked as a system administrator and program coordinator for the My COVID Response Network. “Having Amarachi participate in both projects simultaneously helped to streamline our processes between the two initiatives,史蒂文森说.

The Healthy Oakland program also assisted in supporting a senior living facility with bi-weekly food deliveries, and weekly or bi-weekly phone calls with residents to discuss healthy living. “Along with a great group of students, Dr. 史蒂文森, and Oakland County Health Division staff, I created telehealth education sessions on nutrition, 体育活动, 资金管理, 健康的烹饪, 食品储藏室和厨房管理, 压力管理, 健康倡导,Wachuku说.

“Amarachi has been incredibly valuable in the development of our health education materials, 通过她的体贴, 注重细节, respect towards our participant population, 以及她的整体职业道德,史蒂文森说.

With a better understanding of the ongoing public health crisis, the team is transitioning again to provide vouchers to families and seniors that can be spent at participating vendor sites (Sprout Fresh Food Store, 奥克兰农贸市场, 狂欢节的市场, and Save Plus Supermarket) on fresh fruits and vegetables.

“This graduate assistantship has increased my depth of knowledge on the social, 情感, 经济, and physical needs of diverse populations,Wachuku解释道. “It also has prepared me for interdisciplinary teamwork in the health science field.”

Wachuku hopes to continue collaborating with communities and developing programs that holistically shape the health trajectories of underserved communities.

Discover the opportunities available in the Department of 跨学科 健康科学 at 奥克兰.edu/shs/interdisciplinary-health.