Using Public Health Theories and Practice to Educate Carroll College Students About Health Risks of Vaping

Abstract

Within the last five years, there has been an increase in the number of people using E-Cigarettes (an activity otherwise known as “vaping”). Perhaps this is because young adults do not believe there are health risks involved in the recreational use of E-Cigarettes (Katz et al., 2019). To better understand this problem, students in the Public Health Theories and Practice course at Carroll College conducted research to survey how this trend has impacted students on campus. Researchers first completed a review of the academic literature to gain a better awareness of the risks of vaping and how to implement possible solutions. Students then completed fourteen environmental scans and an outlet density scan to determine vaping resources in Helena. To best understand the perception of vaping on-campus, researchers also conducted a focus group of eight Carroll College students in addition to twelve individual interviews. After compiling this data, students aimed to educate the community about this significant public health concern by creating educational flyers and by delivering public health presentations for community members both on and off campus.