Cleveland Nurse Makes Her Hometown Proud—and Healthy

Places where residents don’t have access to affordable, healthy foods — also known as food deserts — are a growing problem affecting millions of Americans. But in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, 26.7 percent of children lack access, at times, to enough food for an active, healthy lifestyle, making it a full-blown health crisis.¹

Jennifer Knapp, a graduate of Chamberlain University’s Master of Science in Nursing Family Nurse Practitioner specialty track in 2016, tackled the issue of food insecurity during her time as a student. She was born and raised in the Cleveland area and had previously completed a policy analysis on food insecurity in Cuyahoga County. So, when one of her projects at Chamberlain challenged her to “identify a health issue impacting your community,” she knew right away which issue she’d choose.

“Food insecurity is a major problem here,” she said. “The first time people experience it, many don’t know where to get help because there has never been a resource for that.”

Jennifer researched every healthy eating option she could find and ended up acing her project. But it felt like a waste to stop there. “I thought, ‘Well, I did all of this work … I should at least try to use it to help someone.’”

She had no idea how big her little project was about to become.

A Hidden Health Emergency

Food deserts don’t often grab headlines. They are associated with a number of adverse social and health outcomes, yet it’s not always easy to build public concern or drive immediate change.¹

“Food insecurity is a social risk factor that needs to be addressed,” Jennifer said. “There were multiple programs available, but the public wasn’t really aware of them because they weren’t well advertised.”

In Cuyahoga County alone, more than half of the residents experience food insecurity despite local programs designed to eliminate hunger.² In addition to not having access to healthy eating options, residents often can’t afford to buy fruits or vegetables. Many even run out of food before they are able to purchase more.

The long-term impacts only get worse from there. People who lack access to basic nutrition staples are more likely to experience preventable diseases like obesity, heart disease, and diabetes.² Children who go to school hungry have a harder time focusing in class, so their grades suffer — followed by their college and career prospects. When fixed incomes don’t allow enough for a nutritious diet, seniors are forced into eating processed and fast foods.

From Project to Policy

Jennifer started by reaching out to Cleveland public health officials. They guided her to the director of the Healthy Cleveland website, who was impressed by her drive to help her community.

“I told them, ‘If we can list all of these programs and encourage food-insecure people to take advantage of them, we can get more of them the help they need.’”

Jennifer was surprised to receive a quick response from Healthy Cleveland’s director. It turned out the website had been planning to add a “Community Resource” section for years, but never had time for the exhaustive up-front research it would require. They were delighted to learn that Jennifer had already done the legwork for them.

Healthy Cleveland quickly updated its website with all of Jennifer’s information. Finally, everything from food banks to farmers markets to hunger-related financial support was available in one easy-to-find place.

“By showing people these programs exist and encouraging those who are hungry to come forward, we can make sure more people get the help they need,” Jennifer said. “I was so excited to know that my work is actually making a difference for the people in my community.”

Discover What Chamberlain University Has to Offer

If you’d like to join the nursing profession, or prepare for a new position, earning a master’s degree may be a good choice. Chamberlain’s online MSN degree program offers nine specialty tracks that let you match your studies to your nursing interests.

If you want to study to become a nurse practitioner, you can choose one of these NP specializations: Adult-Gerontology Nurse Practitioner: Acute or Primary Care, Family Nurse Practitioner, or Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner. There are non-clinical tracks in Healthcare Policy, Nurse Educator, Nurse Executive, Nursing Informatics and Population Health.

Chamberlain also offers accelerated options for those who aim to earn their degree in a shorter time frame.

Ready to earn your next degree? Learn more about Chamberlain’s MSN program.

¹Source: https://map.feedingamerica.org/county/2022/child/ohio/county/cuyahoga

²Source: https://reports.mysidewalk.com/69e685eaba

Chamberlain University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (www.hlcommission.org), an institutional accreditation agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Accreditation provides assurance to the public and to prospective students that standards of quality have been met. The baccalaureate degree program in nursing, master’s degree program in nursing, Doctor of Nursing Practice program and post-graduate APRN certificate program at Chamberlain University are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education, ccneaccreditation.org.

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By Chamberlain University