Preventive medicine
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Preventive medicine · Dec 2013
GoWell: the challenges of evaluating regeneration as a population health intervention.
Urban regeneration can be considered a population health intervention (PHI). It is expected to impact on population health but the evidence is limited or weak, in part due to the difficulties of evaluating PHIs. We explore these challenges using GoWell as a case study. ⋯ Commitment to a long-term evaluation by the Scottish Government and other partners has enabled us to develop a package of studies to investigate health and other outcomes, and the processes of a PHI. GoWell will contribute to the evidence base for interventions focused on tackling the wider determinants of health and help policymakers to be more explicit and realistic about what regeneration might achieve.
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Preventive medicine · Dec 2013
Healthy Alberta Communities: impact of a three-year community-based obesity and chronic disease prevention intervention.
To assess the impact of a 3 year (2006-2009) community-based intervention for obesity and chronic disease prevention in four diverse "Healthy Alberta Communities" (HAC). ⋯ Health outcome indicators at the community level may not be sufficiently sensitive to capture changes which, over a relatively short term, would only be expected to be incremental, given that interventions were directed primarily to creating environmental conditions supportive of changes in behavioral outcomes rather than toward health outcome change directly.
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Preventive medicine · Dec 2013
Overweight trajectories and psychosocial adjustment among adolescents.
Few studies have investigated overweight trajectories and psychosocial adjustment among adolescents. We conducted analyses with data from the multisite Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development (SECCYD). ⋯ Study findings may advance knowledge on the distinct developmental trajectory patterns of overweight youth and their linkages to the psychosocial adjustment during the period of pubertal transition. The results highlight the need for future prevention research to improve the physical development and mental well-being of adolescents.
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Preventive medicine · Dec 2013
Development of a childhood obesity prevention programme with a focus on UK South Asian communities.
We report the development of a childhood obesity prevention intervention for UK South Asian primary school-aged children, guided by the UK Medical Research Council (MRC) framework for complex intervention development and evaluation. ⋯ The intervention development process has resulted in a tailored intervention programme to prevent childhood obesity in UK South Asian communities, but also intervention processes that could be applied to other communities and tailored to local context.
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Preventive medicine · Dec 2013
Concept mapping applied to the intersection between older adults' outdoor walking and the built and social environments.
For older adults, the ability to navigate walking routes in the outdoor environment allows them to remain active and socially engaged, facilitating community participation and independence. In order to enhance outdoor walking, it is important to understand the interaction of older adults within their local environments and the influence of broader stakeholder priorities that impact these environments. Thus, we aimed to synthesize perspectives from stakeholders to identify elements of the built and social environments that influence older adults' ability to walk outdoors. ⋯ Individual perceptions and elements of the built and social environments intersect to influence walking behaviors, although targeted studies that address this area are needed.