N479 Professional Activity Evaluation Form

Your Name: Gibbons, Brendan

Lacroix

Date of Activity: 04/13/2016 Faculty name: Darlene

Describe the community service/professional activity/s you attended or participated with (be
specific about the purpose and your role):
During this professional activity I had the opportunity to shadow a recreation specialist at the
Pascua Yaqui recreation center. This specialist maintained many of the diabetes prevention
programs such as the healthy eating and cooking program, spinning club, weight lifting club,
hiking club, and basketball leagues. During my time at the recreation center I was specifically
looking for the interventions that the tribe had implemented with the ultimate goal of decreasing
the prevalence of diabetes in the community.

Where was this held and what was was program/activity length?
The programs were held in the Pascua Yaqui recreation center in the middle of the tribal
reservation. The activity was 9am to 5pm, and consisted of me shadowing the recreation
specialist as she performed her daily activities and organized various activities for the
community. The activity consisted of me traveling to the Pascua radio station where the
recreation specialist and I gave an announcement over the airwaves about diabetes prevention
and about the various programs and how to get involved. Additionally, I was able to sit in on a
weight lifting class and also watch as the specialist performed a simple assessment on potential
patrons of the gym and the surrounding facilities. The assessment included: height, weight, blood
sugar readings, and a short health history that was obtained through a questionnaire.

Discuss the value of this experience to you (be specific).

The experience was of value to me in the fact that it opened up my eyes to the various
interventions that were able to be performed for a community and the impact that these
interventions can have. The recreation specialist had worked at the rec center for 8 years, when I
questioned her about the impacts that the various programs had made on the community she
stated that the effects were immense. For instance, she explained that the healthy cooking and
eating program had greatly impacted the community in that the members that had implemented
both a healthy diet and exercise regimen were experiencing huge drops in weight. She also
explained that there was a large culture shift in the community in that many tribal members
frequently attended classes and were beginning to implement healthy alternatives and exercise

regimens in their day to day activities at home. It was extremely valuable to be in an institution
and follow a community leader that had been successful in changing a community.

Would you recommend this specific communnity/professional experience in the future; why or
why not? (Describe):
I would recommend this community experience. This experience allowed me to see how the
individuals at the recreation center used various social media to promote their cause.
Additionally, it was interesting to see the activities and events that were being hosted by the tribe
in order to facilitate the attendance of as many tribal members as possible.

Brochure or proof of attendance obtained? Yes (Rachels business card) Signature on

validation of clinical hours form obtained? Yes