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Volunteer's Research Improves Public Health
By Melva Seal, Boulder County
Volunteer Spotlight Writer
"Whatever interest you might want to pursue, you can probably find a way to
gain volunteer experience," advises Ingrid Asmus, a volunteer for Boulder
County's Health Planning Program. Her own experience is a perfect example.
With two Bachelor's degrees, a Masters, and a PhD, Ingrid excels in the field of
academic research. Fortunately for the Boulder County Public Health
Department, she chooses to volunteer those skills for the benefit of the
community.
The Boulder County Health Planning Program collects information and conducts
research to determine the nature and extent of health problems in the
county. Over the past year, Ingrid has donated over 300 hours of time and
energy to research issues such as unintended pregnancy and emergency response.
For each new project, Ingrid gathers all information on the issue, interprets
the data, and writes a literature review that summarizes her findings.
Sometimes she finds answers that can help the county frame appropriate responses
or solutions. In other cases, when not enough information is known about
the issue, Ingrid's work prompts additional community research.
With every research initiative, Ingrid enjoys the chance to expand her knowledge
in a new field. Her work on tobacco education explored the association
between smoking and alcoholism. In her next project, she will catalogue
all available health data and statistics to create maps of county health issues.
This visual format will both facilitate a better understanding of the issues and
provide an ideal way to communicate those issues to the public.
Ingrid enjoys having the opportunity to expand her knowledge in areas that are
relevant and important to the public. Also, she is encouraged to know that
her research will have practical use. "It's very important to me to know
that what I'm doing is helpful to other people," Ingrid said. When she
volunteers, she sees firsthand how her work benefits the bigger picture.
For more information about the volunteer opportunities in Public
Health, please visit:
http://bouldercounty.org/ealth/Volunteer/index.htm
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