HCA 250 All Assignments

Week 1

CheckPoint: Health Decisions and the Biopsychosocial Model.

How do factors in the biopsychosocial model operate when you make a decision that affects your health? Think of examples of when you made either good or poor decisions. The health consequences of your decisions can be minor or major.

Discuss examples of health decisions from your own experiences as you respond to the following in 250 to 300 words:

oDescribe an example of how biological factors influenced a decision you made, and how the decision impacted your health. Biological factors include physical conditions you have either inherited or developed over time. Sample response: Heart disease runs in my family. When I turned 21, I decided to speak with my doctor about what I could do to control my risk. She provided me with Web links to help me tailor my diet and exercise to help lower my risk of getting sick, and she scheduled regular blood tests to help monitor cholesterol. The decision to see my doctor and stick with her advice will help me live a longer, healthier life.

oTo give an example of how psychological factors influence health decisions, describe the thought process and emotions that influenced a health decision you made in the past. What motivated you to make the decision, and how did the decision impact your health?

What role do social factors play in your health decisions? Reflect upon the influence of your values or the values of someone else. Share an example of how your values or others values influenced a health decision you made in the past, and describe how the decision impacted your health.

Assignment: Daily Hassles Self-Assessment

Resource: Table 3A.1 on p. 82 of Health Psychology

Print and complete the self-assessment on p. 82 of the text.

Answer the following in a 500- to 750-word response:

oCompare your total hassle score with the given relative hassle scores. How stressed are you in relation to your peers?

oSelect one event that had a high frequency of occurrence. What can you do to lessen the frequency of this event?

oSelect three different hassle events you have assigned a score of at least 2 (hassle event occurs occasionally). What biological, psychological, and social impacts do the three selected hassle events have on you when they occur? How can you reduce or eliminate stress caused by the events when they occur?

oIdentify at least one system in your life that provides support for the social aspect of the biopsychosocial model. How does that social support system respond when you are under stress? In what way does it help promote your overall (psychological and physical) health or healthy behaviors?

oAre any examples of stress events in the table, or any other stress events you can think of, good for your health or performance? Explain.

Week 2

CheckPoint: Stress, Health, and Everything in Between

Resources: Appendix C and Ch. 4 of Health Psychology

Complete Appendix C to investigate which factors mediate the influence of stress on health.

Week 3

CheckPoint: A Day in the Life of Josie

Resource: A Day in the Life of Josie digital story located on the student web page at

Write a 250- to 300-word reflection about how beliefs and behaviors affect health promotion and disease prevention. Use examples from Josies experiences throughout the day.

Assignment: Health Promotion Program

Design a health promotion program for individuals in the workplace or in school that results in increased physical or psychological well-being.

Define the following characteristics of your target population:

oOccupation and location (or school level)

oAge range (or grade levels)

oEducation range (or grade levels)

oSocioeconomic range

oAny potential language or cultural factors

oOther additional, pertinent factors

Write four one-sentence goals for the program. Each of the four goals must relate to successful program completion and should promote one specific health behavior. The sample goals below describe a work place program designed to help participants achieve and maintain a healthy body mass index (BMI):

Four Goals for the Workday Warrior Program:

1.Participants will adopt a regular exercise program.

2.Participants will attend 90% of meetings.

3.Participants will identify three reasons why this health behavior is important to them in the short- and long-term.

4.Participants will work toward attainment and maintenance of a healthy BMI.

Describe ways to get the target group interested in the program. What incentives would you offer to develop positive attitudes and increase motivation? When and how often will incentives be offered? How are the incentives related to program goals?

Develop ways to gauge and maintain long-term success. How will participants measure progress toward modified habits or behavior? How will the program reinforce lasting success after completion? How will the work or school environment be modified to support program goals?

Address individual needs. How might cultural beliefs impact program perceptions? What kind of support will be available to individuals who experience setbacks in goal achievement? How will the program be delivered so there is equal access among your target population (in what way, by whom, located where, in what form of media, etc.)?

Present your ideas in a 1,200- to 1,400-word APA-formatted paper with a minimum of three references other than the text. One reference must be a journal article retrieved from the University Library. Additional references must be reliable sources retrieved from the library, Internet, or elsewhere.

Post your paper as a Microsoft Word attachment.

Update Appendix B (optional).

Week 4

1.CheckPoint: Amanda Wants Help

Resources: Amandas MySpot profile (age 30) and this weeks videos located on the student web page.

Read the following background information, based on a true story:

Amanda is now 30 years old. She is still addicted to cigarettes and is abusing both alcohol and prescription pain medications. She has been unemployed for some time, has been evicted from several homes, and is now staying with her only friend. Her parents have been trying to contact her but she is afraid they will judge her. She recognizes that her life is a mess and she wants help.

View Amandas MySpot profile (age 30) at

Post your 300- to 350-word response to the following: Which substance abuse recovery strategies do you believe would be most appropriate for Amanda? Base your response on Amandas background information, what has happened in her past, her current MySpot profile, and this weeks readings and videos. What factors in her past and present will make the recovery process difficult? What kinds of strategies would you recommend to decrease her chances of relapse? Is there an existing substance abuse recovery program you would recommend for her? Why?

Week 5

CheckPoint: Culture and Health Behaviors

Complete Appendix D and post it as an attachment.

Assignment: The Best and Worst of Two Systems

Compare health care delivery and management options available in the U.S with health care delivery and management options available in a different country of your choice.

Select one feature from each countrys system that, in your opinion, is the most effective in providing comprehensive patient care. In addition, select one feature from each countrys system that is least effective toward comprehensive patient care.

Discuss your findings and defend your opinions in a 1,100- to 1,400-word paper in APA format.

Use a minimum of three sources other than the text. One reference must be a journal article retrieved from the University Library. Additional references may be reliable resources retrieved from the library, Internet, or elsewhere.

Week 6

1.CheckPoint: Coping Styles and Psychological Preparation

Resources: Ch. 5, Table 5.1 (p.120) & Ch. 10 of Health Psychology, and the WebMD Web site at

Review the cardiac catheterization procedure presented in your text on p. 280, or read about it on the WebMD Web site.

Select either Case A or Case B:

oCase A: Gerry is a tall and lean 64-year-old male pacing the floor at the cardiologists office. He has been experiencing severe chest tightness and shortness of breath for several days, but has not told his wife because her father recently passed away from a massive heart attack. She is still mourning the loss. Gerrys cardiologist has just told him that he needs a cardiac catheterization. Gerry squeezed this appointment into his busy schedule as a real estate broker for a commercial real estate company in Boston. He now wonders if all of the extra time at the office he put in to climb up the ladder of success was worth it.

oCase B: Marsha (age 40) and Clint (age 45) have been waiting patiently in the clinic room for preoperative instructions for mitral valve replacement. Marshas surgery is scheduled for one week from today. She had rheumatic fever as a child and has been experiencing shortness of breath and exercise intolerance, noted when walking around the block. Marsha and Clint have two healthy children, ages 10 and 14. Clint is a journeyman plumber. Marsha is a homemaker who struggles with reading. She has dyslexia, and is upset with herself for not trying harder to read more about how to stay healthy. Both Marsha and Clints parents live about 1,000 miles away, in a farming community where the couple grew up, met, and married. They are very involved in their church, and people have already offered to help.

Determine the patients coping style. Explain which psychological preparation method would be most appropriate for the patient based on his or her background, coping style, and behaviors in 250 to 300 words.

Update Appendix B (optional).

Week 7

1.CheckPoint: Pain Matrix

Resource: Appendix E

Complete Appendix E and post it as an attachment.

2.Assignment: Treatment Options for Clinical Pain

In this assignment, you will exercise critical thinking skills. Remember to suspend judgment while inquiring into multiple aspects of the issue. Answering the questions requires application of problem solving skills and methods, and your recommendations must be derived from your own evaluative decisions.

Resources: Ch. 12 of Health Psychology

Consider the following three cases of clinical pain:

oCase 1: Various types of pain from a below-the-knee amputation resulting from diabetic neuropathy

oCase 2: Acute pain from an abdominal hysterectomy

oCase 3: Chronic headaches (non-migraine)

Use information from Ch. 12 of the text and other sources to help you comment on whether surgical, pharmaceutical, behavioral, and cognitive treatment methods would or would not be considered appropriate for each of the three clinical pain cases. Discuss and defend your answers.

Recommend an appropriate pain treatment plan employing one or more specific methods for each individual case. Describe each plan and provide support for your recommendations.

Discuss the benefits of having all four (surgical, pharmaceutical, behavioral, and cognitive) pain treatment methods available to chronic pain patients in a traditional hospital.

Compile your answers in a 1,200- to 1,400-word paper in APA format. Use a minimum of two sources besides the text.

Post your paper as a Microsoft Word attachment.

Week 8

CheckPoint: Marys Battle

Resource: Appendix F

Due Date: Day 5 [Individual forum]

Read about Marys case in Appendix F.

Select four categories from the following list:

oAge of patient

oPrevious illness adaptation history

oQuality of life during palliative care

oLength/term of illness before death

oPsychological support

oSocial support

oMedical support

oFinancial support

oLiving will/legal needs

oFamily/friends needs

oSpiritual needs

Discuss in 250 to 300 words how the four categories you selected might influence Marys adaptation to her terminal illness. Describe whether those influences will positively or negatively contribute to the success of her adaptation.

Week 9

Capstone CheckPoint

Imagine you are witnessing a senate debate in Washington, D.C., hours before a vote on a comprehensive health care reform proposal. A significant number of senators are open to the idea, but are unconvinced to support full integration of health psychology-based wellness components in health care policy.

Post your 250- to 300-word response to the following: What are the three most significant concepts you have learned in this course that you would include in a speech supporting incorporation of health psychology concepts in health care policy?