Feasibility of a Multicomponent Program to Promote Physical Activity and Nutrition in Georgia Low-Income Early Care and Education Settings.

BACKGROUND

This article describes the process and intermediate outcomes from a program implemented in 65 Early Care and Education (ECE) centers serving low-income families throughout Georgia during the 2014-2017 school years.

METHODS

The HealthMPowers' Empowering Healthy Choices in Schools, Homes, and Communities ECE program was based on the organization's previously successful elementary school program and aligns with current early childhood nutrition and physical activity recommendations. Participating centers worked with HealthMPowers for up to 3 years. A team from each center led changes by conducting annual self-assessments, creating and implementing improvement plans, and implementing nutrition and physical activity programs using educational resources and environmental cues. A monitoring and evaluation plan provided ongoing feedback to HealthMPowers and centers. Family and staff surveys provided insights into behaviors of children, families, and staff. Process measures included specific benchmarks (e.g., center leadership team formation, improvement plan implementation). Annual self-assessment results served as intermediate outcome measures.

RESULTS

As of 2017, 65 centers had enrolled in the program. All centers formed a health team and completed the baseline self-assessment and most implemented an improvement plan (88%). At the 1-year follow-up self-assessment, centers reported improvements from baseline including never offering food incentives for good behavior (75%-86%), conducting taste testing at least once a month (61%-79%), and rarely/never serving sugar-sweetened beverages (93%-96%).

CONCLUSIONS

Initial process measures from a multicomponent health promotion program in ECE were promising. An integrated continuous improvement approach to working with child care settings is feasible and likely effective.