Students on Voice of Gompa
Aaron Debah, a mental health nursing educator at United Methodist University’s Winifred J. Harley’s College of Nursing, has been interested in substance abuse prevention for a long time. So, when he heard about Nursing for All’s request for community-based public health program ideas, he knew right away what kind of program he wanted to design.
Aaron’s program operates in partnership with two outside groups: one, Ganta United Methodist High School (GUMS), and two, the radio station Voice of Gompa 106.5. Since beginning his program, Aaron has held both small weekly meetings and larger educational sessions at GUMS. His most recent information session was held December 18, and included 23 students and three staff attendees. Meanwhile, Aaron also uses his weekly radio show on Voice of Gompa to discuss the dangers of substance abuse with a wider audience. Sometimes Aaron will include a student from GUMS in his radio program, because he thinks teenagers are more apt to listen to each other than adults.