Oral

Despite years of focus on the increase in child and adolescent obesity, many community programs continue to struggle with the development and implementation of protocols to efficiently identify overweight and obese children in primary care, and to provide nutrition and lifestyle counseling to promote healthy eating and other behavior change that will enhance health and well-being. In many communities access to safe opportunities for physical activity are scarce, as is access to healthy foods such as fresh produce. Obesity is an issue for which patient follow-up visits may be difficult to arrange and maintain. Finally, programs struggle with identification and measurement of outcomes that are realistic and that may be achieved in a relatively short time frame. This session will discuss various aspects of community-based interventions for children and families who are at high risk for obesity and its health consequences. Presentations will discuss patient perspectives on the physician’s role in managing these issues, the relationship between emotional state and eating behavior, and ways to determine if a program or policy is ready for rigorous evaluation.

Session Objectives: At the end of this session, participants will be better able to: Identify barriers to healthy behavior changes in diet and activity for urban families Better understand best practices models for implementation by community health centers providers Identify outcome measures for obesity prevention programs

CE Credits: CME, Health Education (CHES), Nursing