Emma Nicles
Pronouns: She/Her
Research Mentor(s): Dr. Nikhil Parekh
Research Mentor School/College/Department: VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System / NonUM
Program:
Authors:
Session: Session 4: 1:40 pm – 2:30 pm
Poster: 88
Abstract
What does it mean to be healthy? There are a multitude of characteristics that go into living a healthy lifestyle and every individual may have a different idea of what it means to be healthy. The Whole Health Integrative Research Team led by Dr. Nikhil Parekh tackled this question with a focus on Whole Health, a system of health designed by the VA Healthcare System. Whole Health involves considering all the aspects of a person including physical, emotional, and mental health, and examining the individual holistically. The Personal Health Inventory, Circle of Health, and Passport to Whole Health are some of the resources used in providing Whole Health Care. Some of the background research conducted by the team established that there are multiple ways to consider Whole Health including physical activity, diet, and even spirituality (Passport to Whole Health, Chapters 5, 6, and 11). To research some of these areas, the Whole Health team created a survey in Qualtrics from September through November 2023 and then distributed the survey to roughly 170 participants. The survey included questions that would help the researchers better understand all that goes into the Whole Health approach. The survey included questions related to the Circle of Health, including areas such as moving the body, nutrition, and spirituality. The survey was then analyzed through Qualtrics and the RStudio statistical software package. RStudio was used to consider tests such as a t-test as well as other tests to determine the statistical significance between variables measured through the survey. One specific area of Whole Health that I focused on is the connection between the hours of physical activity a week and an individual’s age. The results of the t-test indicated that there was a strong association between the hours of physical activity and the age of an individual. This data is important for global health across populations because it is important to see what ages have a decreased rate of physical activity and to do something to combat this public health issue. For my implementation project, I decided to offer various physical activity programs for a local community in need in the Ann Arbor area.
