Addressing obesity among hard-to-reach and minority populations: The Family Van's "What's My BMI?" program

Alba Cruz, PhD, MPH¹, Heather Kaufman Stein, MD², Jason D. Copeland¹, Sam Engelstad², Toni K. Williams¹, Rainelle White¹, Claire Hebenstreit², Sandra Crump, PhD², and Lee M. Kaplan, MD, PhD². (1) The Family Van Program, Harvard Medical School, 1542 Tremont Street, Roxbury, MA 02120, 617-442-3200, alba_cruz@hms.harvard.edu, (2) Weight Center, Massachusetts General Hospital, 50 Staniford Street, 4th Floor, Boston, MA 02114

Obesity in the United States has emerged as a primary public health concern, particularly among racial and ethnic minorities. Women and people of low socioeconomic status within minority populations are at significantly greater risk for being overweight or obese. Poor nutrition, lack of affordable and healthy food, and a preponderance of fast food restaurants have created an environment, particularly among low income and minority populations, that fosters poor eating habits and obesity. Using a well-established, community-based, mobile health services model of care, in collaboration with an obesity treatment and research center, we have developed an innovative health education and promotion program entitled, “What’s My BMI?” to address the issue of obesity among Boston’s most vulnerable and hard-to-reach populations. This pilot program empowers community residents to take control of their weight through health education, body mass index (BMI) assessment, and nutritional counseling as part of a holistic approach to improving the health of the community. The program’s multilingual educational curriculum highlights components that explain, within a culturally-sensitive context, the risks of obesity and its co-morbidities including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and several types of cancer. It equips community members with cogent, comprehensible, and individualized weight reduction plans that focus on attainable and durable lifestyle changes. Analysis of outcomes data collected as part of this pilot program will demonstrate that this innovative, community-based approach to obesity-related health education and promotion in a medically underserved, urban environment enhances awareness of obesity and its co-morbidities, and facilitates beneficial adjustments in eating and physical activity behaviors.

Learning Objectives:

At the conclusion of this session, the participant (learner) will be able to

1] Understand the effectiveness of mobile health services, as a community-based health care model, in engaging and providing health education, health promotion, and effective screening in vulnerable populations. 2] Recognize the potential for mobile health services to increase community awareness of the importance of good nutrition and increased physical activity to reduce the occurrence of overweight and obesity 3] Appreciate the advantages of academic-community partnerships for promoting health among hard-to-reach populations.

Keywords: Community-Based Health Care, Obesity

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I have a significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.
Relationship: I am the Executive Director of the Family Van.

Recorded presentation

Community Approaches to Obesity, Nutrition, and Physical Activity

The 132nd Annual Meeting (November 6-10, 2004) of APHA