The outcome of the relationship established during this visit was intended to be a meaningful interchange of resources and experiences for both faculty and students at the two schools. It was successful in that regard. Funding is now being sought to enable further collaboration.

As part of a new vision for public health in Georgia, the role of the public health nurse (PHN) is shifting from a predominantly individual and clinic-based care model to a population health practice model. Based on focus groups conducted with management and frontline PHNs in 2001, nurses in Georgia were unprepared for this transition and lacked a strong understanding of population health concepts and competencies. To prepare nurses for their new and expanded responsibilities, an online population health course was developed specifically for currently employed PHNs. The Quad Council PHN Competencies (2003) provided the roadmap in identifying the population health online course and continuing education training program priority competencies for PHNs in Georgia. Along with incorporating the competencies into case studies and didactic learning, the required projects served as evidence of competency application. The population health online course was offered from fall 2000 to spring 2005 in collaboration with Georgia schools of nursing and has enabled a cohort of nurses to lead the way as Georgia transitions into a new public health model. Nurses who completed the course reported greater experience with and an understanding of population health competencies.

This intervention study focused on evaluating the effectiveness of teaching tobacco prevention in children using ToPIC, an interactive program. The program was presented in 2 or 3 class sessions to increase awareness of health risks related to tobacco use. Participants consisted of 201 students from the Boys and Girls Clubs in 5 rural counties of a southeastern state. A significant increase in knowledge from pretest to posttest was found; t(200) = -13.65, p < .0001. Children's responses to the effects of smoking correlated to the content material incorporated in ToPIC. Recommendations for program improvement are discussed.

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Communication with others is a core human imperative; this is especially true in health care. Individuals with intellectual disabilities often face daunting challenges in both health literacy and communicating their health needs and questions. Education for professionals in specialized communication is critical in improving care for their clients with intellectual disabilities. To address this issue, an educational framework, ID-COMMUNICATE, was created to guide improved interactions between health care providers and clients with intellectual disabilities and was further developed into a continuing education program. The modules of the ID-COMMUNICATE program focus on specialized communication techniques and strategies and related professional practice issues. This program can be disseminated in a variety of ways and is easily adapted for professionals in many disciplines. [ J Contin Educ Nurs. 2019;50(1):20–25.]

Although a few studies have suggested the use of smokeless tobacco to be less harmful than smoking, all forms of smokeless tobacco are recognized carcinogens and dangerous for health. It is not sufficient to simply ask patients about smoking behaviors. Primary care providers, especially nurse practitioners, have the unique opportunity to assess use of smokeless tobacco and to offer treatment and counsel to help patients to stop the behavior.

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