SCTR’s Community Engaged Scholars Program plays a crucial role in getting childhood obesity initiatives across the finish line

Children playing at the MUSC Urban Farm.
Caption
Children playing at the MUSC Urban Farm.
Image Credit
Sarah Pack

Medical University of South Carolina researchers describe the development of a school-based wellness initiative for combating childhood obesity by the MUSC Boeing Center for Children’s Wellness (BCCW) in the November issue of the Journal of School Health. Launched in 2007, the program is now available in 200 schools in 20 school districts across South Carolina, thanks to its flexible implementation model. Schools select from a menu of intervention options to tailor a wellness approach that is right for them.

It was South Carolina’s ranking in 2005 as eighth worst in the nation for childhood obesity that brought the urgency of the problem into focus and galvanized action around the issue, said BCCW director Janice Key, M.D., lead author of the article.

According to Key, it became clear early on that schools were the setting where obesity could best be addressed.

Read the full article.
Submitted by Danielle Hutchison on Friday, December 17, 2021 - 10:49.
Organization
Medical University Of South Carolina
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Goal 2: Engage Patients and Communities in Every Phase of the Translational Process
Goal 3: Promote the Integration of Special and Underserved Populations in Translational Research Across the Human Lifespan