Assignment: Community Health

Case Challenge Scenario

A large urban county health department was recently awarded a $500,000 federal grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to develop a 3-year community-based intervention to address childhood obesity. The county health department is soliciting proposals from public health professionals to recommend childhood obesity interventions that could be implemented, countywide.

Notable characteristics of the community include:

• The population of the county is 1.5 million, with two-thirds of residents living in the urban center.

• The racial makeup of the county is 68% White, 9% Black or African American, 8% Asian American/Pacific Islander and 12% other/more than one race. 14% of county residents self-identify as Hispanic or Latino.

• 28% of county residents are age 24 or younger.

• The childhood obesity rate has increased from 14% to 22% in the last decade - well above the national average rate of 17%.

• Obesity rates are highest among males, communities of color, and low-income neighborhoods in the county

• Only 20% of children and adolescents get the recommended daily fruit and vegetable intake. Fewer than half meet the physical activity recommendations for their age group.

• Three-fifths of school-age children eat at least one meal provided by school cafeterias.

• There is no current policy or regulation that limits food and beverage advertisements or product sales on school campuses

• The state recently implemented a 7% budget cut to non-essential public spending line items. This has affected agencies including school districts, parks and recreation, public safety, and even the local community health center.

• The county is home to a regional distribution center for PepsiCo (parent company for Pepsi-Cola, Frito Lay, Mountain Dew and other products). It is the single largest source of employment in the county and sponsors a large scholarship program for high school students in the county.

• Six months ago, a drive-by shooting took place within two blocks of a local elementary school during school hours. Parents and other community members have been concerned over safe routes for their children to walk and bike to school.

The county health officer is considering proposals for a 3-year community-based intervention that addresses one or more of these factors contributing to childhood obesity in the community. She has said publicly that she would like to prioritize interventions that span individual, family, and community level actions. She has also highlighted that she is interested in the most cost-effective ways to use the $500,000 grant funding given the realities of budget cuts at the county and state level. Long-term sustainability is also an important priority to community leaders.

Your task is to propose a community-based intervention to address childhood obesity in this fictional urban county that is effective, feasible, and sustainable for the community to undertake.

Community Health Case Scenario Challenge

Assignment: Community Health Case Scenario Challenege

Objective: To develop an intervention proposal designed to help alleviate childhood obesity in a fictitious community.

Content Requirements:

• Brief backgroundon health problem and the population at risk

o Based on what you know of the community (noted above)
o Based on your midterm paper assignment

• Challenges in Prevention & Intervention

o What are challenges in preventing the health issue / intervening to mitigate harms?
o Statement of the importance of addressing childhood obesity in this community
o Thesis statement providing the backbone/direction of your paper

• Proposed intervention

o What - are the strategies?

- Detailed description of activities, policies, etc.

o Who - is involved and who is targeted in the strategies?

- Identify who implements and the target population for each of the activities.

o When - will this take place?

- Is there a timeline for implementation?

o How - will this be implemented and sustained?

- What is the budget for activities and how will activities be sustained for the future?

o Why - is this the best intervention for this community?

- How does this align with the priorities of the funding agency and county health officer?
- What are the strengths of your intervention proposal?

• Community Health Intervention and Socio-Ecological Model

o Describe the level of prevention (primary, secondary, tertiary) your activities target.
o Describe at which level of the SEM your activities address (individual, interpersonal, community, policy)
o How do your activities align with what you know about the contributing factors for childhood obesity?

• Conclusion

o Reiterate health issue and impact on this community
o Statement of importance of addressing health issue to promote community health

• References

o APA Style Reference list

Format Guidelines:

• Cover page with course, term, name, and title of paper

• Use of scholarly and/or government resources to support assertions

o Provide in-text citations and a full reference page at the end of presentation

• Organize paper with appropriate sub-headings (such as those detailed above)

• Free of spelling and grammatical issues.