A team of six peer health educators (PHEs) on the Washington State University Pullman campus have been named finalists in a statewide public health case competition and are vying for a $5,000 grant to implement their ideas. The competition concludes April 18 at the University of Washington.
Peer health educators are student employees in Cougar Health Services’ Health Education department. They facilitate workshops on topics such as mental health and suicide prevention, sexual health, and hazing prevention. The PHEs have trained more than 6,400 students this semester. Even though the public health competition is not part of their jobs, Health Education Assistant Director Bekah MillerMacPhee said she is proud of the students, who are the first PHEs to ever participate in it.
“The students in our program are so intellectually curious, and we create an environment where they know their passions, their academics, and future professional paths don’t need to be compartmentalized,” MillerMacPhee said. “I see them connecting the dots and leaning into a topic that they really care about.”
The competition began in January when 62 teams, consisting of more than 300 students from colleges and universities across Washington, began working on solutions to a real public health challenge facing state residents. The case centers on the impact of recent Medicaid cuts. Teams were tasked with developing an evidence-based, actionable strategy to protect vulnerable populations in the state.
Developing solutions in real time
After a thorough investigation of the populations most at-risk, the PHEs prepared a 20-page proposal titled “Maternal Health Matters.” It includes specific strategies to help people in the Yakima Valley maintain access to Medicaid and critical health services while considering health care policies, financing, medical research and data, and interdisciplinary collaboration.
Borrowing from their work and volunteer experiences on campus, the PHEs created a detailed plan to implement mutual aid stations in community centers to distribute supplies such as Plan B, diapers, tampons, condoms, and educational materials about the changes to Medicaid.
The winning team will receive a $5,000 grant to implement its proposal.
“This competition is a very cool opportunity to put together everything we have been learning and working on in Health Education into practice,” said team member Ani Rice, a junior neuroscience major. “We are excited to be able to work on this statewide public health challenge in real time and have our work reviewed by top health professionals.”
In March, the field was narrowed to 10 finalists, each preparing a 20-minute presentation. The winning team will receive a $5,000 grant to implement its proposal.
“It has been really exciting to see the students use their knowledge, strengths, and skills to create a project that is very special to them,” said Iris Venegas, program coordinator in Health Education.
Having great WSU connections
Given all the time the PHEs have put into the project so far (up to 40 hours per week preparing for and writing the proposal, and 10 hours per week since), Rice and fellow team member Leah Grier are confident they have a good shot at winning. It has helped immensely, they said, having great support from the university.
“We have found our connections at WSU to be very helpful,” said Grier. “Our bosses in health education and our professors have critiqued our ideas, reviewed our proposal, and written letters of support for us.”
The final step, said Rice, is getting their feedback on the group presentation.
“It has been such a long and difficult process, but we have great mentors that really want us to succeed,” Rice said. “Without them, we wouldn’t be here.”
