N479 Professional Activity Evaluation Form

Your Name: Hailey Pettis Date of Activity: 1/23/2017 & 1/25/2017 Faculty name: Mary

Describe the community service/professional activity/s you attended or participated with (be specific about

the purpose and your role):

I participated in the Pima County Street count this January. This was separated into two different

days. The first day was a training session and the second day was the actual count. During the training

session I was assigned a group and a section of Tucson to count. We went over the survey we would be

conducting as well as some tips and safety points. With my group we then discussed a meeting place for the

day of the count. My role was to collaborate with my team and get to know them. The second day we meet at

0630 at a Starbucks. We all got into one car then headed to our area. Our purpose was to locate and survey as

many homeless people as we could find. If they did not want to participate in the survey, we filled out a form

stating where we found the homeless person. My role was to conduct the actual interviews. When we came

across a homeless person I would explain to them who we were and what we were doing then ask them to

participate in the survey. If they participated, the homeless person received a small bag and a five-dollar gift

card to McDonalds. The survey aimed to assess multiple aspects of the homeless persons life. Included in

the survey was the length of homelessness, number of episodes of homelessness, where they slept the night

before, what services they used, any history of mental illness/drug abuse, any health conditions, veteran

status, barriers to seeking services, and demographic information. I also participated in the career fair at

CON. Through this I was able to speak to multiple different nurses in different fields.

Where was this held and what was was program/activity length?

The training was held at Trinity Presbyterian ChurchTrinity Hall: 400 E. University Blvd on the

night of the 23rd. The training lasted about two and a half hours. On the day of the count we were assigned
section 42 which is south of the I-10 near the Costco on Tucson Market Place Rd. We drove around for about

four and a half hours looking for and interviewing the homeless. The career fair was one hour.

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

I am writing my honors thesis on a best practice recommendation for homeless health care, so this

experience had a lot of value to me. I have volunteered at Z mansion and El Rio before nursing school, but I

have not had much other contact with the homeless since then. I can do research for what feels like forever,

but until I am actually out in the community talking to the homeless I will not be able to write strong

recommendations. I was able to talk to homeless people about health concerns they have as well as barriers to

care. This helped me tie together my thesis. I really feel that I am able to make a difference in the community

through events like this. I aim to work in acute care after graduation, but I am still very passionate about

staying involved with the community around me. I also really enjoyed the career fair. This event further

solidified my interest in being an ICU nurse after talking to current ICU nurses. My dream job would be on a

trauma unit in a trauma level one hospital.

Would you recommend this specific community/professional experience in the future; why or why not?

(Describe)

I would recommend this for anyone. The street count only happens once a year and is not all that time

consuming. Many people do not realize the everyday struggles of a homeless person. There is so much

negative stigma around the homeless population. I feel that if people would just take the opportunity to speak

with a few of the homeless this stigma would decrease. I would recommend this so that others can see that

homeless people are still people and deserve a fair chance. I would recommend the career fair to any future

nurse so they too can have the opportunity to explore what nursing as a career has to offer.