Recorded presentation

Margaret L. Bogle, PhD, RD, LD¹, Earlene Strickland, PhD¹, Kathy Yadrick, PhD, RD², Catherine Champagne, PhD³, Patrick Casey, MD⁴, Edi;th N. Hyman, PhD⁵, Bernestine McGee, PhD, RD, LDN⁶, and Beverly McCabe-Sellers, PhD⁷. (1) Lower Mississippi Delta Nutrition Intervention Research Initiative, USDA, Agriculture Research Service, 900 S. Shackleford Road, Suite 509, Little Rock, AR 72211, 501-954-8882, mbogle@spa.ars.usda.gov, (2) School of Family & Consumer Sciences, University of Southern Mississippi, 2609 West 4th St., HE 219, P.B. Box 5054, Hattiesburg, MS 39406-5054, (3) Pennington Biomedical Research Center, 6400 Perkins Rd., Baton Rouge, LA 70808, (4) Arkansas Children's Hospital Research Institute, 800 Marshall, Little Rock, AR 72202, (5) Department of Human Sciences, University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, P.O. Box 4971, Pine Bluff, AR 71601, (6) Dept. of Family and Consumer Science, Southern University A&M College, E.C. Harrison Drive, P.E. Thrift Hall, Room 109E, Baton Rouge, LA 70813, (7) US Dept of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, SPA, Lower Mississippi Delta Nutrition Intervention Research Initiative, 900 Shackleford, Suite 509, Little Rock, AR 72211

Establishing effective and sustainable community-based food and nutrition interventions first requires a comprehensive assessment of community resources, food intake, food accessibility, food security, and barriers. The Lower Mississippi Delta Nutrition Intervention Research Initiative (NIRI) has conducted comprehensive rural community assessment through five surveys: Key Informant Survey, Foods of Our Delta Survey (FOODS 2000), Food Store Survey, Focus Groups, and Community Resources Assessment. The FOODS 2000 survey was the first representative cross-sectional dietary survey of the Lower Mississippi region of Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi. This survey of more than 1500 Southerners was followed by in-store survey of 174 supermarkets, small-medium grocery stores, and convenience stores identifies the problems of access to and quality of foods in this high health risk, low-income region. A series of three focus groups were held in nine counties and parishes to identify barriers to improving food choices, food security, and shopping. Three communities were chosen to establish three local NIRI organizations. Within each community a survey was made of existing agencies and programs. These provide the background for which community based participatory research was implemented using the Community Participatory Planning and Evaluation (CPPE) model. These steps have provided significant insights into how these communities see their problems and dispel some commonly held misconceptions about food and nutrition in rural America.

Learning Objectives:

• Discuss the process by which comprehensive commmunity assessment for food and nutrition interventions was done.
• Describe the results of a comprehensive community assessment of current resources and practices influence availability of healthy food choices.

Keywords: Community Health Assessment, Food and Nutrition

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.

Recorded presentation