Smithfield Hospital

Consider yourself as a nursing student working at the Smithfield Hospital.
Smithfield Hospital is an institution committed to serving the community, and has agreed to provide healthcare
services the homeless residents living in the temporary housing shelter located 5 miles from the hospital.
These services include a special weekly clinic held at the shelter and in hospital services as needed.
The temporary housing shelter is a 32-bed shelter for men and women who are homeless for a variety of
reasons. The residents represent a high-risk segment of the population as many do not participate in
preventative healthcare and a significant number of them present with mental health issues. Most have limited
social and material resources and come to the shelter because they have nowhere else to go. Very few of the
residents are employed and most have a high school diploma or less. Their healthcare needs range from
emergency services to acute and preventative physical mental health services. Several of the residents have
chronic conditions and their contact with healthcare services is limited.
Health education is an important component of the care they receive from the nursing staff who strive to teach
them to care for themselves.
1.Which risk factors suggest that this population may have low literacy and inadequate health literacy skills?
2.As the nursing student providing education how would you assess the reading and comprehension levels of
the residences or which clues will support your rationale?
3.Select a teaching strategy you would use with this population and explain why the strategy would work when
teaching groups with mixed literacy levels?
4.Identify ways that you would evaluate the learning that has taken place resulting from your instruction