Youth Shelter Bed Bugs & Lice Education

Youth Shelter Bed Bugs & Lice Education Allie Mechtel, Maddy Rettenmier, Elvina Kuzubov, Megan Joseph, Kevin Phan School of Health Sciences, Seattle Pacific University NUR 4153: Nursing Leadership in Community Engagement Leah Ngoche DNP, MPH, ARNP-BC 8 November 2023 Youth Shelter Bed Bugs & Lice Education Introduction Seattle Pacific University Nursing students were assigned a fifth quarter leadership project in the greater Seattle area. Our group was assigned to a youth shelter located in Belltown, Seattle Washington. It is a thirty-bed, animal friendly shelter for young individuals looking for a safe place to stay. They offer long-term housing for those in transition to more stable housing, night-by-night arrangements and day programs as well. Day programs provide clients with lunch and dinner, hygiene supplies, clothing, computers, laundry, areas to nap/rest, activities to engage with the community, and connect with case management as well as health care providers. They partner with a local coffee shop that offers a 4-month paid job experience to clients who experience barriers to receiving employment within the community. The shelter employs several staff on site who look after the clients and support them with their daily needs the best they can. We met the site director and determined that not all of the staff are knowledgeable about pest infestations or up to date on current pest control protocols. Our project further assisted the staff with the prevention and education of bed bugs and lice. The goal for our project was for the staff at the Seattle youth shelter to show an increase in knowledge regarding bed bugs and lice and how to best support the clients that walk through their doors by November 1st, 2023. Background As a group, we worked with the Director of Day Programming at the youth shelter. After meeting with the director and discussing the needs of the community, education regarding bed bugs and lice took precedence. The director mentioned in our meeting that individuals who contract bed ...