NIH: Community Programs to Reduce Childhood Obesity

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, (NHLBI), a branch of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), has issued a request for information about studying community programs to reduce childhood obesity. According to the request, NHLBI plans to conduct “an evaluation study of communities that will examine outcomes associated with community programs to reduce childhood obesity through policy, environmental, behavioral, and educational activities addressing energy balance. The goal is to examine effects of childhood obesity programs by using a natural experiment al design. Results will be disseminated to inform national and local policy for reducing the prevalence of childhood obesity.”

The information NHLBI is requesting includes how “community” should be defined in this type of evaluation research, what data collection tools exist to measure the impact of childhood obesity programs, and the types of study designs that should be considered. NHLBI would also like to know about specific community programs and the approaches they use to address childhood obesity.

Responses are due by April 10. See the full request for information for complete details.

Next HEAT meeting is April 21

The next HEAT meeting will take place on Tuesday, April 21, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m., at Tallahassee Memorial Hospital, Conference Room A (enter through cafeteria). We will focus on funding proposals to support partnership development and to conduct community engagement workshops on obesity and the food environment. Lasagna dinners will be available from TMH catering for $5. Please contact Lance Gravlee to reserve a dinner.

Continuing Education for Health Equity

Like many communities around the country, we have used the PBS documentary Unnatural Causes to raise awareness and stimulate discussion about the causes of social inequalities in health. Now there is an online Continuing Education (CE) program for health service providers.

The online CE program for Unnatural Causes is produced by San Francisco State University and Community Health Works. CE credit is provided by the American Public Health Association and is available for physicians, registered nurses, certified health education specialists, and any provider whose board accepts CE credits for non-physicians. The program consists of a four-hour series that awards up to four CE credits per person for a cost of $50 per person. For more information, visit the program website.

Next HEAT Meeting is March 24

The next HEAT meeting will take place on Tuesday, March 24, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m., at Tallahassee Memorial Hospital, Conference Room A (enter through cafeteria). We will focus on discussing our NIH proposal to support partnership development. Lasagna dinners will be available from TMH catering for $5. Please contact Lance Gravlee to reserve a dinner.