Assessment of Community-Level Barriers

HCA430: Special Population

David Whitehead
Instructor Bauman
July 26, 2015

The vulnerable population I chose to discuss is the chronically ill and disabled people.
The chronic illness I decided to write about is childhood obesity in Louisiana. Being born and
raised in Louisiana, I have firsthand knowledge of the obesity epidemic going on.
My proposed programs to health with the childhood obesity are to partner with local
recreation and community centers in neighborhoods. Community and recreation centers help
unite a variety of residents from the surrounding communities for social, educational and
recreational activities that improve the quality of life for everyone involved. Every child needs to
be active in the early stages of their life. When a child adapts a negative eating habit and inactive
lifestyle it can carry on to their adult life. Prolonged unhealthy habits can be detrimental to one's
health. The goal is to help get not only children but adults get active as well. The proposed plan
would be to organize a weekly field day for the surrounding neighborhoods. One day out the
week full of games and activities where everyone is having fun and being active. According to
the 2008 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, children need at least 60 minutes of
exercise a day. Regular exercise and physical activity are proven to improve children's physical
and mental health, and help maintain a healthy weight. It promotes healthier communities,
healthier meals for children and encourages healthier families. Also at the field day have health
educators there to inform parents and children on living a healthy lifestyle. One barrier I can
think of is getting the primary power and finances to help with the event and activities. The
health educators will be there to inform and educate parents on what a healthy lifestyle is. Not
only is being active the problem, but the nutrition intake is also something that needs to be
looked at. Parents who have bad eating habits will pass that same diet off to their children. A
micro-level barrier is financing. Most feel that they can't afford to eat healthily. The society we
live in today is tough to eat healthily. Eating healthy can be expensive a salad is $6 but you can

get five cheeseburgers for that same price. My goal would be to inform parents about healthy
food options that are affordable, and the impact junk food with fewer nutrients can have on your
child's health. "Those who are eating less or skipping meals to stretch food budgets may overeat
when food does become available, resulting in chronic ups and downs in food intake that can
contribute to weight gain"(Bruening et al., 2012; Dammann & Smith, 2010; Ma et al., 2003;
Olson et al., 2007; Smith & Richards, 2008). Also environmental barriers that some residents
face which include access to healthy food and limited options on the school menu.
The biggest challenge we face is financing the event. Putting on an event for residents
once a week won't be cheap nor easy. We will have to make sure we have the manpower as well.
Getting enough people to work the events is key. Finding a source of funding is the first step. We
must make a conscious effort to get information about funding. We need to partner with other
organizations who have similar motives and experiences. If needed we can work with the
residents of the communities we are trying to reach. Schools and local business may be willing to
help because it is bettering their community as well. Another option is to contact TV and radio
stations about sponsoring. Some media outlets use special events for free advertising.
Not only is being active the problem, but the nutrition intake is also something that needs
to be looked at. Parents who have bad eating habits will pass that same diet off to their children.
The society we live in today is tough to eat healthily. Eating healthy can be expensive a salad is
$6 but you can get five cheeseburgers for that same price. In most low-income neighborhoods,
there are not many healthy food options. Also, there are not many supermarkets in the area. With
the lack of grocery stores, it becomes less likely that they will purchase fruits, vegetables, and
whole grains. In the place or markets are mom and pops style corner stores. Their options
become limited, and they are not eating for health but what they can afford at the time.

"Households with limited resources to buy enough food often try to stretch their food budgets by
purchasing cheap, energy-dense foods that are filling that is, they try to maximize their calories
per dollar in order to stave off hunger." (Basiotis & Lino, 2002; DiSantis et al., 2013;
Drewnowski & Specter, 2004; Drewnowski, 2009). Another goal will be to help educate parents
on inexpensive, healthy food options.
The environment barriers are necessary to deal with. Lower income neighborhoods do
not have as many community or rec centers like higher income areas have to make it harder to
lead an active lifestyle. When centers are available, they may not be seen as attractive. Lower
income communities usually have fewer natural resources and features. You add that to the crime
rate and unsafe surroundings, this may be a reason children are less likely to use the facilities.
To run a legal operation, we will need to obtain some documentation. We may need
permit and licenses depending on the event and activities. Since our primary goal is to help fight
chronic illness, we will need workers who are certified in CPR in case of emergencies. We must
spread the word to the community that we are here to provide them helpful and informative
resources for the greater good of the commonwealth. We need the residents to know that the
resources we are providing to the commonwealth are optional but here for you.

References.

Bruening, M., MacLehose, R., Loth, K., Story, M., & Neumark-Sztainer, D. (2012).
Feeding a family in a recession: food insecurity among Minnesota parents. American Journal of
Public Health, 102(3), 520-526.
Basiotis, P. P. & Lino, M. (2002). Food insufficiency and prevalence of overweight
among adult women. Nutrition Insight, 26. Alexandria, VA: U.S. Department of Agriculture,
Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion.