Fit WIC: Attitudes, Perceptions and Practices of WIC Staff toward Addressing Childhood Overweight

Serrano, Elena; Gresock, Emily; Suttle, David E.; Keller, Adrienne; McGarvey, Elizabeth L.

doi:10.1016/j.jneb.2005.11.030

Cited by 13 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…To our knowledge, the NY Fit WIC is the first population-based childhood obesity prevention initiative to directly target low-income preschool children through the WIC program using strategies that go beyond the traditional food supplementation and nutrition counseling [30]. While other state WIC programs have adopted and tested Fit WIC concepts, they have done so in a limited number of settings and not across entire populations served by their respective WIC programs all their WIC local agencies [8,9,27,31]. The analytic framework used in this process evaluation is not only supported by well-established theories of behavior change but also consistent with recent calls for linking theory and empirical evidence in the interpretation of process and outcome evaluation results [24,32].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evidence of the adoption and implementation of a statewide childhood obesity prevention initiative in the New York State WIC Program: the NY Fit WIC process evaluation

Sekhobo¹,

Egglefield²,

Edmunds³

et al. 2011

Health Education Research

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Process evaluations are critical in determining whether outcome evaluations are warranted. This study assessed the extent to which a childhood obesity prevention initiative, NY Fit WIC, was adopted and implemented by the New York State Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC). Process data came from qualitative telephone interviews of 101 WIC local agency directors, following NY Fit WIC trainings. Activities were summarized and cross-tabulated by target level (i.e. participant, staff, agency or community) and by theoretical construct (i.e. knowledge promotion, skill building, self-efficacy or role modeling). Approximately 528 activities were reported across all WIC agencies. When activities were grouped into similar categories, 123 unique activities were identified. Agencies were more likely to implement physical activity-related activities (67%) than nutrition-related activities (33%). The majority of activities targeted WIC participants (47%) and staff (22%) and focused on skill building/self-efficacy (67%) among participants and on role modeling (61%) among staff. The involvement of all agencies shows a high level of adoption of the initiative. The diverse number of activities suggests that WIC local agencies tailored implementation to match their resources and clients' needs as planned. These results suggest that an outcome evaluation is warranted to determine whether meaningful behavioral changes occurred among WIC participants and staff.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evidence of the adoption and implementation of a statewide childhood obesity prevention initiative in the New York State WIC Program: the NY Fit WIC process evaluation

Sekhobo¹,

Egglefield²,

Edmunds³

et al. 2011

Health Education Research

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“…Current evidence suggests that parenting interventions may work best as a component of comprehensive interventions [17]. Incorporating parenting education and skills modules into well-established programs, such as the Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) may be an effective way to promote healthy lifestyles among lowincome families [19][20][21].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Socio-Cultural, Organizational, and Community Level Influences on Physical Activity Levels of Latino Preschool-Age Children: A Qualitative Study

Lindsay

Greaney

Sussner

et al. 2014

Int. J. Child Health Nutr.

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Objectives: As more children grow up in families with immigrant parents of Latino origin, there is a need to understand key influences on physical activity behaviors of young Latino children to prevent obesity in this high-risk group. Design: We conducted six focus groups with low-income Latina mothers (N = 33) whose preschool-aged children (2-5 years) were enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program in Rhode Island. Data was analyzed using content analysis to identify recurrent themes. Results: Despite understanding the importance of physical activity for overall health, physical activity was not a top priority for the Latino mothers participating in the focus groups. Mothers reported facing numerous barriers to establishing and maintaining healthful physical activity habits for their preschool-aged children and themselves, particularly financial and socio-cultural barriers. Analyses revealed that Latina mothers perceive the WIC as a program focused on the development and maintenance of healthy eating habits and nutritional status of children and not physical activity. Conclusions: Recognizing the importance of socioeconomic position and the influence of cultural factors on physical activity is essential if effective prevention and intervention programs for Latino families and their children are to be designed. Study findings emphasize the importance of the family as a central unit of change and suggest that successful interventions to promote physical activity of low-income Latino preschool children must take into account the needs and constraints of the family unit as a whole. The WIC program has the potential to be a venue for promoting awareness of and educating low-income Latino parents about the importance of helping their children develop and maintain early healthful physical activity habits. The WIC program can also play an important role in facilitating access and creating programs and services that provide increased opportunities for physical activity of young children and their families.

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“…Previously, WIC nutritionists had noted that many parents were not interested in this discussion when the subject of their child's weight was introduced. 2,3 Although not designed specifically to elicit input about the new tools, results of GHT client satisfaction surveys during the course of the project showed consistent positive ratings of the WIC staff and counseling practices throughout the GHT program. In addition, analysis of client satisfaction while the tools were only being used in half of the state's clinics indicated that client satisfaction was higher with care provided by nutritionists in clinics where the new tools were used compared to clinics where the tools had not been introduced yet.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, prior studies have identified a number of challenges faced by WIC staff as they provide counseling about pediatric overweight-related topics. 2,3 These challenges include differing perceptions of weight status that are related to the WIC clients' culture and ethnicity, parents who do not acknowledge the health risks of their overweight children, and WIC staff that do not want to offend parents by discussing a child's weight.…”

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confidence: 99%

Innovative Tools Help Counselors Discuss Childhood Obesity with Parents

et al. 2013

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Background: Childhood overweight and obesity pose potential health risks for many children under the age of 5 years. Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) nutritionists are in a unique position to help reduce this problem because of their frequent counseling contacts with clients during certification visits. Therefore, four new tools to facilitate nutritional counseling of parents of overweight children during certifications were developed and systematically evaluated.Methods: The Nutrition and Activity Self-History (NASH) form, Report Card/Action Plan (ReCAP), Talking Tips, and Healthy Weight Poster were evaluated by WIC nutritionists via an online survey. Anchors on the Likert scale were 0 for Strongly Disagree to 6 for Strongly Agree. Four regional focus groups were also conducted. Data were analyzed descriptively.Results: The response rate on the survey was 83% (n = 63). Focus groups were comprised of staff that volunteered to participate (n = 34). The NASH form, which replaces a food frequency questionnaire for identifying nutrition risk, had a mean rating of 5.20 as ''Helpful when counseling about weight.'' The ReCAP, Talking Tips, and Healthy Weight Poster achieved mean ratings of 5.70, 4.75, and 5.30, respectively, in this category. Focus group responses were very positive about the usefulness of the ReCAP and Healthy Weight Poster to visually convey the concept of BMI percentile for age using a green, yellow, and red color-coded ''traffic light'' approach to showing healthy versus unhealthy BMI values.Conclusions: WIC programs and other pediatric health care settings may want to consider adopting these innovative tools to better serve their clients and address pediatric overweight in the populations they serve.

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Fit WIC: Attitudes, Perceptions and Practices of WIC Staff toward Addressing Childhood Overweight

Cited by 13 publications

References 10 publications

Evidence of the adoption and implementation of a statewide childhood obesity prevention initiative in the New York State WIC Program: the NY Fit WIC process evaluation

Evidence of the adoption and implementation of a statewide childhood obesity prevention initiative in the New York State WIC Program: the NY Fit WIC process evaluation

Socio-Cultural, Organizational, and Community Level Influences on Physical Activity Levels of Latino Preschool-Age Children: A Qualitative Study

Innovative Tools Help Counselors Discuss Childhood Obesity with Parents

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