Running head: PHASE 3: EDUCATIONAL AND ECOLOGICAL DIAGNOSIS
PHASE 3: EDUCATIONAL AND ECOLOGICAL DIAGNOSIS 5
Phase 3: Educational and Ecological Diagnosis
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Phase 3: Educational and Ecological Diagnosis
Type 2 diabetes remains a persistent public health issue which college students face additional risk because they exhibit poor food habits, limited physical movement and elevated stress levels. The educational and ecological diagnosis uses PRECEDE-PROCEED Phase 3 to analyze behavioral and environmental factors that cause Type 2 diabetes in University of Georgia (UGA) students. This stage groups these elements into prefactors, enabling elements and strengtheners for creating appropriate intervention approaches.
The existing knowledge base of students along with their beliefs attitudes and perceptions about diabetes constitutes predisposing factors. The college student population demonstrates a poor understanding about diabetes risk factors because they wrongly link the illness to senior individuals despite recognizing its increasing incidence in younger adults. The American College Health Association (2021) indicates that many students fail to possess opportunities to read and understand health information thus resulting in late disease prevention practices and unhealthy dietary choices. Cultural preferences for convenience food choices together with confusion about dietary practices lead students toward unhealthy high-fat-high-sugar diets. A decreased ability in managing healthy behaviors combined with low self-confidence in these areas contributes even more to diabetes risk. Prefactors need proper attention from educational awareness efforts concentrating on diabetes prevention alongside the detection of early symptoms along with the diagnosis results of uncontrolled diabetes.
The institutional aspects that create enabling or disabling environments for behavior transformation make up enabling factors. The University of Georgia (UGA) offers existing resources that aid diabetes prevention across different facilities such as the UGA Health Center alongside student wellness programs and nutrition counseling services. The easily reachable health-oriented food choices at dining facilities together with open access to fitness centers helps students maintain healthy choices. The success of these available resources depends on how much students utilize them and understanding they offer. Students do not possess information about accessing these services or face difficulties because of their class times and their lack of transportation. The dining facilities operated by universities sometimes fail to properly indicate their nutritious food choices to their customers. The enhancement of enabling factors requires better exposure to campus health resources and seamless integration of wellness care within students’ typical daily activities.
Health-related behaviors obtain reinforcement through positive social influences acting either in favor of or against such behaviors. The support for health practices comes from four main groups including peer associations alongside family systems and educational staff as well as student clubs. The “Dawgs for Diabetes” group at UGA and the peer health educator initiatives work together to increase diabetes awareness while building an environment which supports screening efforts. Student Government Association (SGA) together with Greek organizations strengthen student willingness toward healthy choices and make positive behavior the norm. The utilization of social media challenges alongside peer testimonies proves to be an especially potent way to use reinforcing factors within campaigns (CDC, 2022). Students tend to duplicate prevention actions when they view their peers practicing such behaviors toward diabetes.
A unified strategy to address Type 2 diabetes at UGA must apply insights from all the behavioral influencing factors that motivate students including those that encourage them and enable their actions. The implementation of better access to resources together with increased awareness and supportive relationships among UGA students will help reduce both diabetes risk and its long-term impact on the student population.
References
American College Health Association. (2021). National College Health Assessment III:
Reference Group Executive Summary. Retrieved from:
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2022). National Diabetes Statistics Report, 2022.
