HealthQuest 2.0 CD-ROM Instructor’s Manual

by Robert S. Gold, University of Maryland at College Park

Nancy Atkinson, University of Maryland at College Park

Using HealthQuest 2.0 in Your Course

HealthQuest 2.0 was designed to supplement a structured college personal health, wellness, or fitness course. Students can complete self-assessments, simulate health decision-making, and set and monitor health behavior change goals. Further, tailored feedback provides a meaningful and individualized learning experience without adding to classroom time. A person who wishes to continue to explore his or her own health long after the semester is over can also use this application.

HealthQuest 2.0incorporates self-assessments, reference material, quizzes, and exploratory games, but it is more than a workbook. Because of the many activities, there are many ways to use the application. Therefore, this is only a starting point. You will find that ideas come to you that are not covered here. Also, instructional ideas for one module may be easily adapted for another.
This manual will give you an idea of how to begin fitting HealthQuest 2.0into your class. The manual begins with some overall instructional ideas for using the program. Following these suggestions, we present instructional ideas in terms of the learning objectives that HealthQuest 2.0 was designed to address. You may choose to incorporate the program fully or as an enhancement to your current teaching strategies.

Table of Contents

Overall Instructional Ideas

The Wellboard

Module 1: Stress Managementand Mental Health

Module 2: Fitness

Module 3: Nutrition and Weight Control

Module 4: Communicable Diseases

Module5: Cardiovascular Health

Module 6: Cancer

Module7: Tobacco

Module 8: Alcohol

Module 9: Other Drugs

Overall Instructional Ideas
Full Use of Application
You can use HealthQuest 2.0 as an integral part of your class:

At the beginning of the class, you can have students use the Wellboard, an in-depth self-assessment covering several areas of health and wellness. Increasing students awareness of their health risks can be a good starting point for getting them to consider their need to take action for promoting their own health.

  • As you work through each health topic, have students begin each learning area by using a self-assessment from the corresponding module.
  • Students can follow the self-assessment by using the “Stages of Change” module to further explore how to make a key behavior for that health area part of their daily life (see below for more details).
  • Exploration activities allow students can how their choices impact on a health issue. Therefore, exploration activities reinforce prevention and risk information while putting these into a relevant context.
  • Resources in the “Topics” section of each module provide additional information and other views on the subject that will help students to follow-up on the information learned in the activities.
  • You may also choose to have students view the Topics articles at the beginning of a module to get a grounding in the subject before exploring their own behavior.

Use some of the quiz items on the exam.
Stages of Change Activities

The Stages of Change activity looks at specific health behavior: routine stress management, daily exercise, and healthy nutrition. Students first assess their stage of readiness to practice the health behavior then receive targeted feedback about how to incorporate the change into their lives. Because these activities can take several months to use, students can choose one as a health behavior project at the beginning of the semester.

The choice of which behavior to address may be based upon the results of the Wellboard assessment. For example, if an area of weakness is Preventive Health Practices, the student may choose to focus on establishing a monthly habit of breast self-examination (BSE) or testicular self-examination (TSE) outlined in the Stage of Change activity in the Cancer section.
Once the student chooses a health behavior, he or she should complete the self-assessment, view the targeted feedback for that stage, and complete the behavioral contract. The student should retain a copy of the contract to guide progress toward the behavioral goal. In support of the contract, students can keep a weekly progress log in which they report how well their chosen strategies and support persons are working. Students can reassess their stage of change and revise their behavioral contract periodically (monthly) as part of monitoring their progress. At the end of the semester, they can evaluate their success, including a report of how their reward system worked and other lessons learned.
Topics Articles
Each section has a series of “Topics” articles. These include a section called “Specifics On…”that describes general information about the health topic, “Healthy People 2010” objectives, and “Key Articles”. “Our Changing World” articles provide information on a current event or aspect of the health issue. Topics can also be used in several ways:

  • Have students read “Our Changing World” articles and compare and contrast them in a module.
  • Have students research a perspective that is not represented and present these to the class. For example, if the articles cover racial/ethnic perspectives, ask students to look at the issue for different age or gender groups.
  • Have students select a topic in “Topics” and do a literature search for more information.
  • Have students prepare new “Topics” articles from current health news.

Quizzes
Students can use the quizzes to reinforce concepts from each section. If they take the quiz on their own, students can print out their quiz with their answers. If the correct response if different from the students answers, they will be listed next to the question. Instructors can also administer a quiz during the first class on a content area to highlight key points and areas of study.
Because students can take the quiz as often as they wants, instructors will be unable to use the quiz for monitoring knowledge unless they can ensure that students take the quiz only once.
The Wellboard
The Wellboard allows students to assess several areas of their health and puts the findings in terms of expected longevity. This activity can be used at the beginning of the course in several ways:

  • Have all students use the Wellboard and report their life score (number of years out of 114) and the score percentages for the eight health areas. Aggregate the results and present them to the class. Discuss trends that appear in these data.
  • Use aggregated Wellboard results from students in the class as a baseline needs assessment on which to tailor your lesson plan for the semester.
  • As a class activity, fill out the Wellboard using a fictional college student. On the first assessment screen, change the demographics to show how gender, ethnicity, age, marital status, and community impacts on average life expectancy.

The Wellboard may also be used at other times in the course:

  • After completing a module, students can revise their answers in the Wellboard. Have them compare their score before and after these revisions.
  • Use the Wellboard as a springboard for talking about life expectancy and common causes of death and illness in the United States.
  • Use the section on preventive health practices to begin a discussion on consumer health and finding a health care provider one trusts for routine medical exams as well as for emergency care.

Module 1: Stress Management and Mental Health

Learning Objectives: using the activities and resources in this module, the learner will be able to:

  1. Assess self for stress and depression and coping resources
  2. Identify personal strengths and weaknesses in coping
  3. Identify coping and stress management skills and resources
  4. Show how stress management can improve quality of life
  5. Build practical skills for implementing knowledge
  6. Stress management skills
  7. Self-help techniques for depression

Self-Assessment for Coping Resources
Students will be able to assess themselves for mental wellness in a self-assessment activity called "How’s Your Mental Wellness?". Have students use this activity to identify the qualities that make them better able to interact with others, meet daily challenges, and enjoy life. Discuss the various components of mental. During a class discussion, ask the class to think of ways to promote wellness.
Self-Assessment for Stress
Students can use the stress assessment activity “How Stressed Are You?” or the “CyberStress” activity to identify the stress in their life and how they are coping with it:

“How Stressed Are You?” allows a student to look at several areas of their life (including money, school, relationships, and health) and to identify stress due to events and daily hassles. They also can rate their perceived stress level for each area. Students can find out which area(s) provide the highest levels of stress for them and whether life events or hassles have the most impact on their stress levels. Aggregate the results to present to your class and have a discussion about the pressures of college. This discussion can provide an introduction to stress management skills.

The CyberStress activity simulates a stress-filled day and can be used to help students assess their reactions to daily stressors. Tell students to choose the scenario that most closely matches their own. If they work and go to school, they should check both on the preferences screen. As they are presented with potentially stressful situations, they should choose the reaction that is closest to how they would react. At the feedback screen, have them print the screen showing their scores. They can also answer the questions in “What do you think?” to evaluate the experience. Review student comments in “What do you think?” by having them print them out and turn them in for a homework assignment.

Self-Assessment for Behavioral Intent
The “Stages of Change” activity in this module assesses readiness to make stress management a daily habit. “Stages of Change” begins with a brief self-assessment of the student’s intention to practice stress management and/or relaxation skills on a daily basis. Have all students report their stage of change and present the frequencies to your class. Have a class discussion about the relative importance/unimportance of stress management as indicated by students.
Quality of Life Implications of Positive Coping
Students can learn more about the positive effects of stress management by working through the “Stages of Change” or by using the “CyberStress” activity:

In “Stages of Change”, students should fill out the self-assessment portion, review the stages up to the Preparation stage, and complete the behavioral contract. One month after their start date, have them examine the Action stage. Each month, students can review their behavioral contract to see if the strategies and support persons they chose have been effective in promoting routine stress management skills. Encourage students to revise the behavioral contract if needed. At the end of the semester - or a few months of use - have students view the Maintenance stage and report their progress, including a discussion of the effect of consistent stress management on their lives.

To use the “CyberStress” activity to evaluate the quality of life effects, have students explore what they think are positive reactions and negative reactions to stress. The activity will provide feedback about these choices and about the person’s long term ability to manage stress using them.

Identification of Coping and Stress Management Skills and Resources
Information on coping and stress management are outlined in the “Topics” articles, the special feature (Mental Health Support), and the tutorial of the “CyberStress” activity. In the special feature called, your students can access information on mental health medications, professionals, self-help groups, organizations, and informational resources. Ask students to contact organizations to receive materials and share the materials with the class.
The “CyberStress” activity tutorial offers pamphlets, an audiotape on progressive relaxation, and videos on deep breathing and yoga exercises. They can practice the yoga exercises at home for a week and report their experience in a reflective paper or journal. The yoga exercises may also be used to cover the importance of flexibility during course work on fitness.
Module 2: Fitness

Learning Objectives: using the activities and resources in this module, the learner will be able to:

  1. Assess current physical activity and interest in various types of exercise.
  2. Provide feedback regarding strengths and weaknesses of current fitness behavior.
  3. Provide information and skills on how to develop a personal fitness program.
  4. Show long term benefits of physical fitness.
  5. Build practical skills for proper stretching and weight lifting techniques.

Self-Assessment for Fitness
The “How Fit Are You?” exercise will help students determine their current level of fitness in four major areas: body composition, cardiorespiratory capacity, muscular strength, and flexibility. The exercise asks students to complete a series of questions about how much they exercise, the types of training they do, how hard they are exercising, and their body size. After completing the questions, HealthQuest 2.0 will give the student feedback on each of the four areas mentioned above.
Ask students to develop individual plans for improving or maintaining their current fitness levels. They should be sure to visit the “Specifics On…” section to learn about the principles and benefits of exercise. The “Pump Up and Stretch Out” section offers information and demonstrations of proper weight training and flexibility exercises.
Planning for a Lifetime of Fitness
The “Fitness Planner” activity will help the student plan a fitness program that suits his or her lifestyle and interests. It helps students to understand the difference between exercise and activity for health promotion and that for physical fitness.
Ask students to discuss their classify their regular activities into those that promote health promotion and those that promote physical fitness. Of those in the physical fitness category, group them further into those activities that promote muscular strength, those for flexibility, and those for cardiorespiratory fitness. Remember that some may fit into more than one category. Suggest to students that they use the HealthQuest 2.0 CD-ROM to help them in this activity.
Your students may want to keep a log of their heart rate for a few days. Ask them to take their heart rate 4-6 times per day doing various different activities (upon waking, during class, during vigorous exercise, etc.). Discuss with them the reasons for this variation in heart rate and the importance of maintaining a strong heart. Are there other factors that influence heart rate other than physical exertion? For example, how does stress or caffeine come into play?
Ask students to prepare a class demonstration of appropriate stretching and strengthening activities. Be sure to highlight common misconceptions about these types of activities and describe how they fit into a complete exercise program.
Quality of Life
The “Exercise Interest Inventory” asks a student to rate how they feel about certain aspects of exercise. The feedback focuses on activities and exercise that would be most enjoyed by that particular individual. Prior to completing this step, ask students to write down the five fitness activities they enjoy or participate in most. After each one, students should indicate their motivation for participating in that particular activity (examples: enjoyment, habit, easiest). Following completion of the Exercise Interest Inventory, ask students to compare their two lists. Are there any surprises? What factors had students not considered to be influential in their choice of exercise? Students may choose to share stories of exercise plans they have discarded or maintained. As they choose to do so, take time to point out the importance of choosing an appropriate and enjoyable exercise.
Developing a Fitness Program
The “Fitness Wizard” advances the learner through a series of inquiries about the kind of exercise program he or she wishes to pursue. The program asks detailed questions regarding the learner’s desired goals, fitness level, days and times for exercising, types of activities, and time needed to stretch and prepare or clean up after exercising. After the learner has entered all the pertinent information the Fitness Wizard writes a fitness plan for the week that can be printed or saved. Prior to doing the Fitness Wizard, students must complete the PAR-Q questionnaire. This questionnaire is designed to help determine if an individual needs to seek the advice of a physician prior to initiating an exercise program. Students can create a fitness plan and use it to help them complete the Energy Balance Activity.