Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #117178

Suzanne M. Winter, PhD, Interdisciplinary Learning and Teaching, The University of Texas at San Antonio, 6900 N. Loop 1604 West, San Antonio, TX 78249, 210-458-5423, suzanne.winter@utsa.edu, Art Hernandez, PhD, College of Education and Human Development, Univeristy of Texas San Antonio, 501 W. Durango Blvd, University of Texas San Antonio, San Antonio, TX 78207, Zenong Yin, PhD, Division of Education, University of Texas at San Antonio, 6900 North Loop 1604 West, San Antonio, TX 48249-0654, and Ashley S. Love, DrPH, MPH, MS, Department of Health and Kinesiology, University of Texas at San Antonio, College of Education and Human Development, 6900 North Loop 1604 West, San Antonio, TX 78249.

Obesity during childhood is rising at an alarming rate across the country and communities with high Hispanic populations are particularly at risk. Mexican-American children, ages 6-18 years, have increased risk of overweight compared to white children, representing a 3-fold increase over the last 4 decades. Difference in the prevalence of overweight was much smaller for children, ages 2-5 years, for all racial groups. These statistics underscore the critical need for effective community-based programs to address this major health disparity and reverse the trend toward increasing obesity. Regrettably, few studies of obesity prevention aimed at early childhood are available in the extant research base. This session will discuss how one community-university partnership collaborated to address childhood obesity prevention. The session will discuss methods of assessing family and childcare practices related to obesity among Mexican-American families in a high poverty neighborhood. How these data were used to inform policy and practice in the community will be discussed. Key strategies for enhancing collaboration among community agencies, local government, and a university research team will be summarized. The session will describe an innovative strategy, collaboration with Promotoras, an organized group of neighborhood residents, for ensuring a culturally competent interface between the research team and the neighborhood. Promotoras encouraged families to participation in data collection, program development, and implementation. Feedback from participants collected by Promotoras helps ensure that interventions are relevant and culturally responsive. Strategies for training neighborhood residents to assist with public health programs will be detailed.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant will be able to

• Describe 4 methods of assessing family and childcare practices related to obesity prevention.
• List 5 key strategies for enhancing collaboration in a community-university partnership.
• Summarize strategies for eliciting involvement of neighborhood residents in preschool obesity program development.
• Articulate how data collected can be used to inform community health policy and practices.

Keywords: Obesity, Community-Based Partnership

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.