community health nursing

COMMUNITY ASSESSMENT: Wellston, Oklahoma 1

Community Assessment

Wellston, Oklahoma

COMMUNITY ASSESSMENT: Wellston, Oklahoma 2

Introduction of the Community

If you hop onto Route 66 headed east of Edmond, Oklahoma, and drive for about 30

minutes, you will come to the small, quiet town of Wellston, Oklahoma. Located in Lincoln

County, it is north of the Turner Turnpike and about 40 miles northeast of Oklahoma City. The

population as of 2014 was 787. This represents a 4.6% population change since 2000. Wellston

was first established as a trading post in 1880. The trading post officially became a town in 1895

and was laid out by a pharmacist named J.L. Ross, who also served as the town clerk. Around the

turn of the century, the town included a school, three churches, general stores, two lumber yards,

two hotels, cotton gins, a bank, and a brickyard. The town grew steadily until reaching its peak

population of 912 in 1990. Since the turn of the 21st century, the population has steadily

declined.

Assessment

Physical/Environmental:

Due to its small size, Wellston has little noise or air pollution and the air quality index

score is 79.3. The climate is moderate, with an average low temperature in January of 28 degrees

Fahrenheit and an average high temperature in July of 93 degrees Fahrenheit. There are an

average of 243 sunny days per year. Yearly, Wellston gets about 38 inches of rain and 4 inches

of snow. This moisture is enough to support many trees both in and out of town, as well as some

small ponds and lakes in the area. Historically, Wellston’s tornado activity is 243% higher than

the U.S. average. This rate is only slightly higher than the rate for Oklahoma, though. Wellston’s

average earthquake activity rate is about the same as that of Oklahoma. This is about 70%

smaller than the U.S. average. Wellston is located just off of Route 66 and the Turner Turnpike.

There is no form of public transportation in Wellston, and many residents use their own vehicles

COMMUNITY ASSESSMENT: Wellston, Oklahoma 3

to commute to the Oklahoma City metro area for work.

Political:

In addition to a Town Hall in Wellston, the Wellston Chamber of Commerce is led by

president and Wellston resident Gloria Goggin. The mayor of Wellston is Paul Whitnah.

Social:

The windshield survey revealed that Wellston has 8 churches, 1 town park, 4 restaurants,

1 gas station, and 1 Dollar General. Police coverage in Wellston is maintained by the Wellston

Police Department and the Oklahoma State Patrol. The crime rate in Wellston is similar to the

average crime rate of Oklahoma and slightly lower than the crime rate of the Oklahoma City

metro area. There are 20 registered sex offenders in the town of Wellston. The Wellston Fire

Department is run completely by volunteers. Wellston residents are predominantly white, with

85% of the population being white. The next largest group is American Indians with 5% of the

population. 11% of Wellston residents live at or below the poverty line. This is significantly

lower than the state average. 89% of residents hold a high school diploma and 15% have a

Bachelor’s degree. As previously mentioned, many Wellston residents commute to the

Oklahoma City metro for work, with a mean travel time to work of 30 minutes. Wellston has an

elementary, middle, and high school. The nearest university is about 30 minutes away.

Economic:

The average household income in Wellston is $28,553. The most common occupations of

Wellston residents are in construction and extraction, management, office and administrative

support, material moving, production, transportation, and sales. The average home value in

Wellston is $85,714.

COMMUNITY ASSESSMENT: Wellston, Oklahoma 4

Health:

The top 10 causes of death in Lincoln County are heart disease, cancer,

bronchitis/emphysema/asthma, unintentional injury, stroke, diabetes mellitus, Alzheimer’s

disease, influenza, pneumonia, liver disease, and suicide. Like much of Oklahoma, the

population of Wellston struggles with obesity. In Wellston, 41.5% of the population is

overweight or obese. Some observed health hazards include agricultural waste and accidents.

Health services are limited in Wellston, but there is one clinic called The Clinic at Wellston. The

county health department is located in Chandler, OK, which is about 17 minutes away. The

nearest large hospital is about 30 minutes away, in the Oklahoma City metro. The closest Meals

on Wheels program is in Harrah, OK, which is about 15 miles away. We interviewed Wellston

resident Sandy Canada about what exercise and healthy lifestyle resources are available in

Wellston. She said that to her knowledge, there are no gyms, exercise programs, healthy eating

programs, or walking trails available.

Data Analysis

There were several points of concern related to the physiologic health conditions in the

Wellston community. The two most prevalent physiologic conditions in Wellston are obesity and

diabetes. In Wellston, 41.5% of the population is overweight. This is significantly higher than

Oklahoma’s rate of 33.1%. This statistic is even more concerning when looking at the bigger

picture, which displays Oklahoma as the eighth most obese state in the U.S. It was also reported

that the Diabetic rate for Wellston is 11.3%, which is the same as that of the highest diabetic

state in the United States, Mississippi. These statistics reveal a need for attention to the issues of

obesity and diabetes.

COMMUNITY ASSESSMENT: Wellston, Oklahoma 5

After observing Wellston, several elements are apparent that contribute to the present

health of its residents. First is the access to food. There is no grocery store located in Wellston.

There is a Dollar General and a gas station where residents can purchase non-perishables or

frozen food, but there is no fresh produce available to be purchased in Wellston. There are also

no public resources for residents to exercise. There is no recreational building, weight room,

walking trails. There is only one playground. At this time, Wellston does not provide an

environment that promotes health. There are currently no resources available to combat the

problems of obesity and diabetes.

Healthy People 2020 has a goal to create an environment to promote better health for all.

Some ways to help the community of Wellston achieve this goal would be the addition of a

grocery store and public facilities that encourage physical activity. If Wellston can improve their

overall health, then it is likely that the community will also accomplish another goal of Healthy

People 2020. This goal is for people to have higher quality, longer lives, be free of preventable

diseases, and have a decrease in premature death.

Nursing Diagnoses

• Risk of imbalanced nutrition among diabetic residents in Wellston related to limited

access to nutrient-dense foods that align with a diabetic diet and lack of community-

based support for diabetics as evidenced by a diabetic rate of 11.3% of the Wellston adult

population.

• The increased rate of activity intolerance among Wellston residents related to inadequate

public resources for exercise as evidenced by a rate of 41.8% of the population being

overweight in Wellston.

COMMUNITY ASSESSMENT: Wellston, Oklahoma 6

Planning

Risk for imbalanced nutrition:

Goal: Diabetics living in Wellston will have a basic understanding of healthy eating and be able

to describe a “healthy plate” by the end of 12 months.

Risk for activity intolerance:

Goal: The residents of Wellston will have access to at least two free resources for physical

activity by the end of 12 months.

Implementation

Risk for imbalanced nutrition

1. Primary prevention - nutrition and cooking classes will be taught in the schools to

promote better lifestyle choices hopefully preventing diabetes

2. Secondary prevention – community health screenings will be held 4 times a year to

identify those at risk for developing diabetes or those who maybe undiagnosed

3. Tertiary prevention - patients who have diabetes will be offered education classes on how

to manage diabetes with diet and medication

Risk for activity intolerance

1. Primary prevention – education will be provided in the schools about the importance of

exercise to prevent obesity and they will provided with free resources in the community

for physical activity (walking trails, community center)

2. Secondary prevention – community screenings will be held 4 times a year to identify

those who are at risk for obesity or already overweight

COMMUNITY ASSESSMENT: Wellston, Oklahoma 7

3. Tertiary prevention - education will be provided to those who are identified as obese as to

what resources are free to them in the community for physical activity (walking trails,

community center)

Evaluation

At the end of the 12 months, we would send out surveys to those who participated in each

class. For diagnoses number one we would ask the diabetic participants to describe a healthy

plate. For diagnosis number two we’d survey a group of Wellston residents and ask them to

identify at least two resources in the community where they could get some exercise for free.

This would tell us if our plan was successful or if we needed to do a better job of communicating

with our target groups.

COMMUNITY ASSESSMENT: Wellston, Oklahoma 8

Reference List

About Healthy People. (2014). Retrieved November 28, 2017, from

https://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/About-Healthy-People

GET STARTED TODAY. (2017). Retrieved November 28, 2017, from

https://www.mealsonwheelsamerica.org/signup/aboutmealsonwheels/find-

programs?filter=74881#

Greenfield, G. S. (2009). WELLSTON. The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture.

Retrieved November 28, 2017, from

http://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry.php?entry=WE011

List of Water Systems in SDWIS. (2017, October 23). Retrieved November 28, 2017, from

https://oaspub.epa.gov/enviro/sdw_query_v3.get_list?wsys_name=&fac_search=fac_begi

nning&pop_serv=&sys_status=active&wsys_id=&last_fac_name=&page=1&query_resu

lts=&total_rows_found=&fac_county=Lincoln&fac_state=OK

Sandy Canada, personal communication, November 17, 2017

Wellston, OK Profile: Facts, Map & Data. (2017, July 1). Retrieved November 28, 2017, from

https://oklahoma.hometownlocator.com/ok/lincoln/wellston.cfm

Wellston, Oklahoma . (2017). Retrieved November 28, 2017, from

http://www.bestplaces.net/climate/city/oklahoma/wellston

Wellston, Oklahoma. (2017). Retrieved November 28, 2017, from http://www.city-

data.com/city/Wellston-Oklahoma.html

Windshield survey