1. Welcome to HOSA
10/21/14

2. Most Participated Team for Strides
Chachie's Team!
Sierra
Kaheela R.
Clyde J.
Prize: $7 Starbucks gift cards for each!
Most Participated Team for Strides

3. HOSA Conference Events
Did you look over what events you would be interested in?
We will talk more about it in November
Competition in mid February
HOSA Conference Events

4. Intro to Health Literacy Month
What is Health Literacy?
the degree to which individuals have the capacity to obtain, process, and understand basic health information and services needed to make appropriate health decisions
(Institute of Medicine [IOM])

5. What was your blood glucose reading after lunch?
Problem: Healthcare system very complex & Inability to understand can indicate low health literacy which associates with poor health
increase in preventable hospital visits and admissions
more likely to skip important preventive measures (i.e. flu shots)
enter the healthcare system when they are sicker
What was your blood glucose reading after lunch?
Um… What’s glucose?
greater use of services designed to treat disease and less use of services designed to prevent it
may also have negative psychological effects; sense of shame about their skill level
likely to have chronic conditions and are less able to manage them effectively; have less knowledge of their illness and its management

6. Benefits of having health literacy
Better patient – physician relationship
Better communication (you know what you’re talking about!)
Take better care of yourself
Have more understanding and control over your health
Navigate the healthcare system like a pro
Know your health history
Benefits of having health literacy

7. How to increase health literacy?
Requires the effort of healthcare professionals, the community, and YOU!
How to increase health literacy?

8. How to increase health literacy?
Do your research beforehand
Don’t be afraid to ask questions when you see a doctor, it’s their job to inform you and it’s your HEALTH you’re talking about…
Have someone accompany you during doctor visits
Listen to the topics we discuss in meetings, and look out information we put out in the media (we’d appreciate it!)
Have you and your family check out
Health-related news
Valuable Information through articles
For more resources on health literacy, visit:
How to increase health literacy?

9. Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever
What is it?

10. Transmission Dead bodies Infected stool or urine
Fruit that has been eaten by an infected animal
Unprotected sex w/ an infected or recently recovered individual
Infected medical equipment
Infected blood & all other body fluids

11. Symptoms
Fever
Bleeding
Muscle/joint pain
Vomiting
Skin rash
Diarrhea

12. Prevention Avoid undercook food & bush meat Wash hands w/ soap
Wear proper protective clothing
Go to a health facility as soon as you exhibit any of the symptoms

13. FIGHT MISINFORMATION BY SPREADING THE TRUTH ABOUT EBOLA!!!

14. True or False: Ebola is airborne
Spreads when bodily fluids of infected person comes in contact with mucous membranes of healthy person
e.g. mouth, eyes, nose, ears, genital area, open wounds

15. True or False: We are currently experiencing the first major Ebola outbreak
NOT the first, but the LARGEST outbreak
First outbreak in 1976: Democratic Republic of Congo
Largest outbreak, 2014
Sierra Leone, Liberia, Guinea, Nigeria
Approx. 1,700 infected, 900 killed

16. True or False: If you contract it, you die
Contracting the virus DOES NOT equal a death sentence
Strain of ebola has a death rate currently around 55%
In actuality, many people have been successfully treated and released from health centers

17. True or False: Ebola liquefies organs/tissues
CAN involve bleeding (hence “hemorrhagic”) of mouth, nose, ears, eyes but only 20% of cases
Virus weakens blood vessels which causes the internal/external bleeding and prevents from clotting
… but does NOT liquefy organs/tissues

18. True or False: Ebola can be spread through fruits
Commonly thought that the virus can live in certain fruits and that you can contract it through these foods
Insufficient evidence to support this thought

19. True or False: Antibiotics can help fight Ebola
Ebola is a viral infection
Many believe that antibiotics can cure viral infections
Antibiotics effective only with bacterial infections
Neither cure or vaccine for it

20. Works Cited