Carrying Out the Interventions – Guidance and Federal Government Resources

If you are at the point of actually carrying out interventions, you may want some guidance. For example, say your plan includes conducting a health communication campaign and building an outdoor walking trail, but you are not exactly sure of the best way to carry out these two projects. You want some help and are hoping to find resources that will assist in developing an effective health communication campaign and in building a walking trail.

 

There are tens of thousands of resources available from the public and private sectors to aid you in implementing the interventions in your plan. This section of Moving to the Future focuses on helping you find resources that are available from Federal government agencies. To find reliable resources from other entities, see the suggestions at the end of this overview to help get you started. There are many ways to organize this resource information, and Moving to the Future has organized it using the following categories:

 

  • Populations
  • Cultural Competence
  • Health Condition or Behavior
  • Food Group
  • Physical Activity
  • Settings
  • Intervention Strategies

 

Populations All or some of your interventions may target a specific population such as men, rural Americans, Hispanics, low-income people, youth, pregnant women, or other population groups. Listed below are some ideas to help you find information for your interventions targeted to a specific population.

 

  • Go to the main webpage for the United States Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and conduct a search for your target population. If, for example, you are focusing on womens health, then search for womens health at the hhs.gov website. A top search result takes you to The Office of Womens Health, where you will find several resources on womens health that could support your planned interventions. DHHS website
  • You can also go to the main webpage for the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and conduct a search for your target population, for example, rural Americans. USDA website
  • Federal government agencies are starting to create websites with resources for specific populations or for specific federal programs. For example, the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC Program) maintains a website of nutrition service tools for professionals working in the WIC Program. The website is called WIC Works Resource System. WIC Works Resource System website
  • Or the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) has a program designed for families and communities to help children maintain a healthy weight. We Can!
  • Local Government Actions to Prevent Childhood Obesity presents a number of recommendations that touch on the vital role of government actions on all levels–federal, state, and local–in childhood obesity prevention. This resource offers healthy eating and physical activity strategies for local governments to consider, making it an excellent resource for mayors, managers, commissioners, council members, county board members, and administrators. Local Government Actions to Prevent Childhood Obesity

 

Cultural Competence Developing culturally competent interventions is imperative to your success, and it requires more than making materials available in languages other than English. Listed below are some resources to help you develop culturally sensitive interventions.

 

  • The Coordinating Center for Health Promotion at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published the document, Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH 2010): Addressing Disparities in Health, which is available from the CDC Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health main webpage. REACH2010 website
  • The Community Guide includes evidence-based recommendations on culturally competent health care. The Community Guide website
  • See the resources available from The Office of Minority Health. Office of Minority Health website
  • Go to the main webpage for DHHS and conduct a search. DHHS website
  • Go to the main webpage for USDA and conduct a search. USDA website
  • Go to the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation website. Disparities is an interest area of the foundation, and they have several resources on this topic. Robert Wood Johnson Foundation website
  • Monitor the federal initiatives that are targeting a subpopulation similar to your target population. For example, if you are targeting black mothers, the Office on Womens Health is working with the African-American Breastfeeding Alliance, Inc., a community-based, nonprofit organization whose purpose is to educate the African-American community about the benefits of breastfeeding, to strategize ways to close the gap between the proportion of white and African-American mothers who breastfeed.
  • Search for specific topics in peer-reviewed journals and in research-based newsletters or magazines.
  • Review resources for professionals who provide direct health care services. There seem to be more resources available for health professionals providing direct care. For example, review the document, CLAS A-Z: Practical Guide for Implementing the National Standards for Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services (CLAS) in Health Care, for suggestions on making your program culturally appropriate.
  • Also see what is available from subpopulation advocacy efforts. For example, the Joslin Diabetes Center in Boston launched the Asian American Diabetes Initiative to enhance the quality of life and health outcomes for Asian Americans living with diabetes. Asian American Diabetes Initiative website You can find nongovernment projects by searching for the subject using an internet search engine such as Google.

 

Health Condition or Behavior Your focus may be on preventing a chronic disease (heart disease, high blood pressure, obesity, or diabetes) or promoting a specific health behavior (breastfeeding or fruit and vegetable consumption). Listed below are some ideas to help you find information for your interventions targeting a disease or health behavior.

 

  • Go to the main webpage for DHHS and conduct a search for the health condition or health behavior you are targeting. For example, if you search for breastfeeding at the hhs.gov website, the top search results direct you to the Surgeon General’s support breastfeeding, and to a other government webpages. DHHS website
  • In addition to finding educational materials, guide books, and other resources you can find out about national campaigns by searching the DHHS and USDA websites. For example, if you search for adolescent bone health at the hhs.gov website, a top result directs you to the Best Bones Forever campaign from the Office of Adolescent Health. Best Bones Forever! website
  • For evidence-based programs and policies that promote community health, go to the home page for The Community Guide. The recommendations are organized by disease and by health behaviors. The Community Guide website
  • Go to the main webpage for the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health to access resources on high blood pressure, cholesterol, heart disease, and obesity and physical activity. NHLBI website
  • Go to the main webpage for the National Institute of Diabetes & Digestive & Kidney Diseases of the National Institutes of Health to access resources on diabetes and weight control and physical activity. NIDDKD website
  • See the resources available on the National Diabetes Education Program website. National Diabetes Education Program website
  • Go to the CDC chronic disease prevention home webpage for resources on chronic disease prevention. For example, you can access the publication, Promising Practices in Chronic Disease Prevention and Control from this webpage. Or you can access the webpages of CDCs Prevention Research Centers, which include useful information on community-based research projects. It will be worth your time to click around the website looking for resources to help implement your interventions. CDC chronic disease prevention website
  • Search or browse through CDC’s best resources to help you plan, implement and evaluate community health interventions and programs to address chronic disease and health disparities issues. You’ll find links to hundreds of useful planning guides, evaluation frameworks, communication materials, behavioral and risk factor data, fact sheets, scientific articles, key reports and state and local program contacts. CDC’s Healthy Communities Program, Tools for Community Action website
  • The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion is pleased to announce a completely redesigned healthfinder.gov. The new site has a prevention focus and has been redesigned based on usability and health literacy principles. Healthfinder website

 

Food Group All or part of your plan may be to promote a specific food group such as whole grains or fruits and vegetables. Listed below are some ideas to help you find information for your interventions focused on a food group.

 

  • Go to the main webpage for USDA and conduct a search for the food group. USDA website
  • Search the Food and Nutrition Information Center at USDA for food and related nutrition resources. FNIC website
  • Go to the main webpage for DHHS and conduct a search for the food group. DHHS website
  • Go to the Fruits & Veggies More Matters home webpage for resources on promoting fruit and vegetable intake. Fruits & Veggies More Matters website

 

Physical Activity Your plan may include interventions designed to promote physical activity. Some ideas are listed below to help you find information for those interventions.

 

  • Go to the main webpage for DHHS and conduct a search on physical activity, moderate physical activity, leisure-time physical activity, walking trail, or other physical activity topics. DHHS website
  • Try the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions main webpage for physical activity to access resources on your physical activity related topic. CDC physical activity website
  • For evidence-based programs and policies that promote community health by increasing levels of physical activity, see The Community Guide website. The topic of physical activity has its own findings and recommendations. The Community Guide website
  • Go to The Presidents Council on Physical Fitness and Sport website for a list of physical activity and fitness resources available on government websites and on health-, fitness- and sports-related organizations websites. President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sport website
  • Go to the main webpage for USDA and conduct a search for physical activity. USDA website

 

Settings Your plan may include interventions designed for a specific place or setting such as child care centers, worksites, or schools. Listed below are some ideas to help you find information for your interventions taking place in a particular setting.

 

Child care centers

 

  • Go to the main webpage for DHHS and conduct a search for child care, day care, or other related phrases. DHHS website
  • Go to the main webpage for USDA and conduct a search for child care, day care, or other related phrases. USDA website

 

Schools Most schools in the nation are required to establish a local school wellness policy, and as a result there are several resources to help implement school-based programs.

 

  • The Healthy Meals Resource System website includes several resources for interventions targeted at child care centers. Healthy Meals Resource System website
  • Go to the resource webpage on a healthy school nutrition environment hosted by USDA. USDA resources on healthy school nutrition environment
  • Check the school-based recommendations in The Community Guide. School-based recommendations are not a stand-alone topic but are covered under some of the health and behavior topics. For example, under the topic physical activity you can find the school-based recommended strategies to increase physical activity among young people. The Community Guide website
  • Look at the Team Nutrition website for resources to help implement your school-based program. Team Nutrition website
  • Go to the Division of Adolescent and School Health website at CDC for resources on making the school environment healthy. CDC DASH website
  • Eat Smart. Play Hard. Healthy Lifestyles! provides practical tools to help educators motivate children and their caregivers to eat healthy and be physically active. Messages and materials are fun and based on MyPyramid and the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Eat Smart. Play Hard. website
  • Policiesincluding laws, mandates, regulations, standards, resolutions, and guidelinesprovide a foundation for school district practices and procedures. Sound policies reassure families, students, and school staff; provide legal protection for schools; and support and direct individuals throughout the school system. Well-drafted and administered policies can also help contain or prevent controversy. CDC and its funded partners provide information, tools, and resources to support school policy and program development, implementation, and evaluation. Healthy Youth: School Health Policy

 

Work place

 

  • CDC’s LEAN Works! Leading Employees to Activity and Nutrition is a free web-based resource that offers interactive tools and evidence-based resources to design effective worksite obesity prevention and control programs, including an obesity cost calculator to estimate how much obesity is costing your company and how much savings your company could reap with different workplace interventions. LEAN Works! website
  • Go to the main webpage for DHHS and USDA and conduct a search for worksite wellness, workplace interventions, or other similar topics. DHHS website   USDA website

 

Health care

 

  • Two example initiatives supported by Federal government agencies that target the health care sector and that are focused on promoting good nutrition and physical activity are the Bright Futures initiative and the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative. Bright Futures has two resources that include clinical guidance for health care providers on nutrition and physical activity: “Bright Futures in Practice: Nutrition and Bright Futures in Practice: Physical Activity. The Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative helps hospitals in giving breastfeeding mothers the information, confidence, and skills needed to successfully initiate and continue breastfeeding their babies and gives special recognition to hospitals that have done so. Bright Futures website   Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative website
  • Go to the main webpage for DHHS and conduct a search. DHHS website

 

Intervention Strategies You may plan to conduct a health communication campaign, to change corporate policies regarding nutrition and physical activity, or to use another strategy to improve your communitys eating habits and physical activity habits. Listed below are some ideas to help you find information based on a particular intervention strategy.

 

Health Communication

 

  • Use the National Cancer Institutes Pink Book, entitled, Making Health Communication Programs Work: A Planners Guide. NCI’s Pink Book website
  • Go to the CDCynergy website. CDCynergy is a multimedia CD-ROM used for planning, managing, and evaluating public health communication programs. CDCynergy website

 

Social Marketing

 

  • The USDA SNAP-Ed Campaign has several resources to help develop and implement social marketing campaigns. SNAP-Ed website
  • The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has social marketing resources to help you carry out your social marketing campaign. CDC social marketing website

 

Media

 

  • Go to the main webpage for DHHS and conduct a search for media, media kit, or other related terms. An example of what you can find at DHHS is a media kit that accompanies the girlshealth.gov website, a website that gives girls reliable, useful information on the health issues they will face as they become young women and tips on handling relationships with family and friends, at school and at home. DHHS website
  • Go to the main webpage for USDA and conduct a search for media, media kit, or other related terms. Some of the search results for the phrase media kit on the USDA website lead you to media kits for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) developed by different state WIC programs. For example, North Carolina has a document entitled, WIC Media Guidelines, and Iowa has a document entitled, WIC Media Kit. USDA website

 

Policy and Environment

 

  • For evidence-based policies that promote community health, see The Community Guide website. Policy recommendations are not a stand-alone topic but are covered under the health and behavior topics. For example, under the topic physical activity you can find the environmental and policy approaches to increasing physical activity. The Community Guide website
  • See the Active Living by Design website for resources to increase physical activity through community design, public policy, and communication. This is a national project of The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Active Living by Design website
  • CDC’s Recommended Community Strategies and Measurements to Prevent Obesity in the United States identifies and recommends a set of strategies and associated measurements that communities and local governments can use to plan and monitor environmental and policy-level changes for obesity prevention. Measures Project
  • CDC’s Healthy Communities Program provides a forum for communities to access resources about promoting policy and environmental change strategies at the local level. Healthy Communities Program
  • The U.S. Department of Agriculture released the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) at Farmers Markets: A How-To Handbook. The handbook provides the managers of farmers markets with a step-by-step guide to installing Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) machines and accepting SNAP benefits. SNAP at Farmers Markets: A How-To Handbook

 

Education

 

  • Go to the main webpage for the United States Department of Health and Human Services and conduct a search for nutrition education, physical activity education, or other related phrases. DHHS website
  • Go to the main webpage for the United States Department of Agriculture and conduct a search for nutrition education, physical activity education, or other related phrases. USDA website
  • The Health Education Curriculum Analysis Tool (HECAT) can help school districts, schools, and others conduct a clear, complete, and consistent analysis of health education curricula based on the National Health Education Standards and CDCs Characteristics of Effective Health Education Curricula. Health Education Curriculum Analysis Tool

 

Non-Federal Government Resources To find additional resources from entities other than the Federal government consider these sources. This list is not complete. It is intended to give you a sense of what is available.

 

State Health Departments Using an internet search engine, such as Google or Yahoo, search for your state health department. Then conduct a search within the department’s website for your area of interest.

 

Philanthropic Foundations The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation W. K. Kellogg Foundation Several state-level philanthropic foundations fund community-based nutrition and physical activities. Use an internet search engine to find the foundations awarding funds on your topic area in your state.

 

Professional Membership Organizations American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance American College of Sports Medicine American Dietetic Association American Public Health Association Association of State and Territorial Chronic Disease Program Directors Association of State and Territorial Public Health Nutrition Directors Directors of Health Promotion and Education National Association for Health and Fitness National Recreation and Park Association Society for Nutrition Education

 

Coalition or Partnership Organizations National Alliance for Nutrition and Activity Nutrition and Physical Activity Work Group

 

Volunteer Health Organizations (National, state, and local) American Cancer Society American Diabetes Association American Heart Association

 

Trade Associations International Food Information Council International Health, Racquet & Sportsclub Association National Pork Producers Council Organic Trade Association USA Dry Pea and Lentil Council

 

Professional Journals American Journal of Health Promotion American Journal of Public Health International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior Journal of the American Dietetic Association Preventing Chronic Disease Women in Sport and Physical Activity Journal

TERMINOLOGY

Coalitions

People work together in a number of ways, in coalitions, partnerships, committees, teams, task forces, and so on. The tools in Moving to the Future will help you no matter how your group is structured. To make Moving to the Future friendly to people working together in different ways, we use these group terms interchangeably. So, if you are working in a formal committee and Moving to the Future uses the word team, the information applies to you as well.

Program

In Moving to the Future, the word program is defined broadly and could encompass any group of activities including projects, services, programs, and policy or environmental changes.

Nutrition and Physical Activity

In Moving to the Future, we often pair the wordnutrition with the phrase physical activity, as for example in “address the nutrition and physical activity needs” or “develop a nutrition and physical activity plan.” This does not suggest that these materials are only useful to people working on community-based nutrition AND physical activity programs. You can use the Moving to the Future resources to develop a plan focused only on nutrition or a plan focused only on physical activity. Moving to the Future provides guidance on a process–not on content. In fact, these materials could be adapted and used to develop a teen pregnancy prevention plan, for example, or a plan for any other community health priority.

Be Flexible & Realistic

Moving to the Future principles Flexible and Realistic are the bywords of this approach. The intent of Moving to the Future is to provide guidance. Use what is helpful and modify materials to meet your needs. Planning and implementing community-based programs is not work that can be done perfectly. Do the best you can, given your real-world limitations, and commit to making improvements every year.