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PERSPECTIVE article

Front. Public Health
Sec. Public Health Education and Promotion
Volume 12 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1441778
This article is part of the Research Topic Evidence-Based Outreach/Service-Learning to Improve Health-Related Self-Efficacy through STEMM Education View all 9 articles

Empowering the Future: Improving Community Wellbeing and Health Literacy through Outreach and Service-Learning

Provisionally accepted
Carolina B. Restini Carolina B. Restini 1*Tracey Weiler Tracey Weiler 2Kirsten A. Porter-Stransky Kirsten A. Porter-Stransky 3Peter J. Vollbrecht Peter J. Vollbrecht 4Jonathan J. Wisco Jonathan J. Wisco 5
  • 1 Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Osteopathic Medicine, Michigan State University, Clinton Township, United States
  • 2 Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, Florida International University, Miami, Florida, United States
  • 3 School of Medicine Greenville, University of South Carolina, Greenville, South Carolina, United States
  • 4 Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States
  • 5 Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, United States

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Institutions training future healthcare professionals in healthcare and community engagement play a crucial role beyond traditional classroom settings. Recognizing their potential to support under-represented groups and minorities, institutions increasingly encourage engagement with schools and community organizations. However, work remains to advance meaningful and impactful educational outreach and service-learning programs. This manuscript synthesizes the perspectives of a group of medical school educators to discuss developing sustainable programs to engage youth in Science, Technology, Engineering, Math, and Medicine (STEMM) education with a focus on biomedical science. Through near-peer education and service-learning, healthcare students can impart knowledge, provide mentorship, promote enthusiasm for STEMM fields, and nurture health-related self-efficacy within individuals and communities. Collaborative efforts through student-as-teacher approaches bridge health-related disparities and cultivate healthier, more empowered futures for all. We advocate for community outreach strategies that target future health professionals early in their education and support the scholarship of teaching and learning and program evaluation. Successful long-term programs must ensure that results are systematically assessed, measured, and perpetuated. This perspective aims to highlight the role of service learning and community outreach in increasing individual health literacy and fostering an enduring interest in STEMM careers, thereby empowering the next generation of elementary and secondary school students.

    Keywords: assessment, student as teacher, community partnership, Outreach/engagement, Health Professions Education, scholarship/curriculum development, service-learning, empowerment

    Received: 31 May 2024; Accepted: 22 Jul 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Restini, Weiler, Porter-Stransky, Vollbrecht and Wisco. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Carolina B. Restini, Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Osteopathic Medicine, Michigan State University, Clinton Township, United States

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.