A Comprehensive Professional Development Training's Effect on Afterschool Program Staff Behaviors to Promote Healthy Eating and Physical Activity

Abstract

Objective Evaluate a comprehensive intervention designed to support staff and program leaders in the implementation of the YMCA of USA Healthy Eating and Physical Activity (HEPA) Standards for their afterschool programs (3-6pm). Design Pre (Fall 2011) and post (Spring 2012) assessment no control-group. Setting/Participants Four large-scale YMCA afterschool programs serving approximately 500 children. Intervention Professional development training founded in the 5Ms (i.e. Mission, Model, Manage, Monitor, Maximize) and LET US Play principles (i.e. lines, elimination, team size, uninvolved staff/kids, and space, equipment and rules), on-site booster training sessions, workshops, and ongoing technical support for staff and program leaders from January to May 2012. Main outcome measures System for Observing Staff Promotion of Activity and Nutrition (SOSPAN). Analysis Multilevel mixed effects linear (i.e., staff behaviors expressed as a percentage of the number of scans observed) and logistic regression. Results A total of 5328 SOSPAN scans were completed over the two measurement periods. Of the 20 staff behaviors identified in HEPA Standards and measured in this study, 17 increased or decreased in the appropriate direction. For example, staff engaged in physical activity with children increased from 26.6% to 37% and staff eating unhealthy foods decreased from 42.1% to 4.5%. Conclusions Comprehensive professional development training, founded in the 5Ms and LET US Play principles, and ongoing technical assistance can have a sizable impact on key staff behaviors identified by HEPA Standards for afterschool programs.

Strategies to Increase After-School Program Staff Skills to Promote Healthy Eating and Physical Activity

“…First-year findings have been reported elsewhere (Weaver, Beets, Saunders, Beighle, & Webster, 2014) and can be found in Figures 1 and 2. The methods reported herein closely reflect the methods of the firstyear outcomes paper given the continuation from Year 1 of the study and are provided in brief below.…”

“…Of the 20 staff behaviors targeted, 17 increased or decreased in the appropriate direction. Furthermore, these impacts on staff behaviors occurred in as little as 3 months (Weaver, Beets, Saunders, Beighle, & Webster, 2014). However, there is little evidence for what intervention strategies align staff behaviors with HEPA Standards in the afterschool program setting.…”

Maximizing children's physical activity using the LET US Play principles

“…Thus, it is imperative that staff maximize the amount of MVPA children accumulate during the available, scheduled PA time (8–10, 24, 28). However, a lack of training leaves many staff without the necessary skills to promote PA, therefore development of easily implemented strategies to maximize the amount of time children spend in MVPA during PA opportunities is paramount (33, 36). …”

Process evaluation of an intervention to increase child activity levels in afterschool programs

“…Recently, one study adopted a comprehensive approach to increasing child PA levels (Beets, et al, in review; Weaver, Beets, Saunders, Beighle, & Webster, in press). Founded in the principles of community based participatory research (Israel, Schulz, Parker, & Becker, 1998), a systems framework (Foster-Fishman, Nowell, & Yang, 2007), and public health policy literature (Brownson & Jones, 2009; Brownson, Seiler, & Eyler, 2010), a collaborative partnership between the YMCA of Columbia and the University of South Carolina implemented and evaluated PA standards in four YMCA ASPs.…”

“…These elements were operationalized in the trainings as the LET US Play principles, which stand for removal of l ines, eliminating e limination, reducing t eam size, identifying u ninvolved staff and children, and modifying s pace, equipment and rules to increase child PA. Findings indicated that changes in staff behaviors consistent with the LET US Play principles (e.g., reduction in elimination games) occurred from baseline to post-assessment (range 11% decrease in staff discouraging behaviors to a 14% increase in staff promoting behaviors) (Beets, et al, in review; Weaver, et al, in press), as did an increase in the overall percentage of girls (9.2% increase) and boys (15.9% increase) meeting the PA standard during ASPs.…”