A Qualitative Examination of California WIC Participants’ and Local Agency Directors’ Experiences during the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic

Au, Lauren E.; Whaley, Shannon E.; Hecht, Christina; Tsai, Marisa; Anderson, Christopher; Chaney, Alana; Vital, Nicole; Martinez, Catherine; Ritchie, Lorrene D.

doi:10.1016/j.jand.2022.07.003

Cited by 14 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…Despite the implementation of program modifications during this time, benefit redemption challenges were common. Consistent with the results of previous research, many participants had difficulty finding WIC-approved items in stores due to a lack of shelf labeling and low stock of WIC foods [ 10 , 11 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 22 , 23 , 24 ]. Some participants also experienced confusion when determining which brands and sizes were WIC-eligible [ 17 , 24 ].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 84%

“…Research conducted prior to the pandemic indicated that certain aspects of in-person appointments (e.g., long wait times, leaving the house with children) were burdensome for participants and made appointment attendance challenging [ 12 , 17 ]. More recent research, which was conducted after pandemic-related WIC program modifications were enacted, found that many participants were satisfied with remote options and prefer them over traditional in-person appointments [ 12 , 13 , 23 ]. Our results support these findings.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Mixed perceptions of remote appointments have also been identified in prior studies [ 12 , 33 ]. Thus, research suggests that moving forward, implementation of hybrid WIC service and appointment options may be warranted [ 23 , 38 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A large body of previous research demonstrates that WIC participants often face difficulties with in-store benefit redemption [ 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 ]. Several factors have been shown to contribute to these redemption challenges including a lack of accurate, consistent shelf labeling [ 10 , 11 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 ], low stock of WIC-approved foods [ 11 , 15 , 16 , 20 , 22 , 23 ], issues at the checkout (i.e., perceived stigma and long waiting times) [ 10 , 11 , 17 , 24 ], confusion about WIC-eligible items (i.e., brands and sizes) [ 17 , 24 ], and inconsistencies between the register and the information participants receive from the program/WIC apps, particularly following program and policy changes [ 20 , 22 , 24 ]. These challenges were exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and related issues such as global grocery retail shortages and rising food and household costs [ 1 , 25 , 26 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Pandemic-Era WIC Participation in Wilmington, Delaware: Participants’ Experiences and Challenges

Halverson

Karpyn

2023

Nutrients

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Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) participants faced unprecedented challenges during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic including financial concerns, a national infant formula shortage, and rising food costs. To mitigate these challenges, the United States Department of Agriculture implemented WIC program waivers and flexibilities aiming to simplify program operations (e.g., remote appointments and food package substitutions). However, little is known about WIC participants’ perceptions of these changes and their impact on in-store benefit redemption. As such, this study aimed to characterize how pandemic-related events impacted Delaware WIC participants’ shopping experiences and program perceptions. The authors conducted semi-structured interviews with 51 WIC participants in Wilmington, Delaware. Survey measures included demographic questions, the Hunger Vital Sign, and open-ended questions regarding WIC program participation experiences during the pandemic. Data were analyzed using a hybrid inductive and deductive coding approach. The results demonstrate that WIC participants benefitted from the pandemic program’s flexibilities. However, they continued to experience burdensome shopping trips as well as concerns about their ability to feed their families due to infant formula shortages and inflation. These findings indicate the importance of extending existing WIC flexibilities and providing continued support for both participants and WIC-authorized retailors.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 84%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Pandemic-Era WIC Participation in Wilmington, Delaware: Participants’ Experiences and Challenges

Halverson

Karpyn

2023

Nutrients

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“…Survey respondents also reported that they would like to receive more online education. Many respondents currently used online education, and even more reported that they would like to use this format in the future, which has also been supported through studies conducted during the pandemic [ 24 , 25 , 26 ]. While both one-on-one and group sessions were in person, a substantial number of participants preferred one-on-one sessions in the future.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 81%

Racial and Ethnic Comparisons in Satisfaction with Services Provided by the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children in California

et al. 2023

Self Cite

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Understanding satisfaction of nutrition education and other services provided in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) is needed to ensure the program is responsive to the needs of diverse populations. This study examined the variation of WIC participants’ perceptions and satisfaction with WIC nutrition education and services by race, ethnicity, and language preference. Phone surveys were conducted in 2019 with California WIC families with children aged 1–4 years. While most participants (86%) preferred one-on-one nutrition education, online/mobile apps were also favored (69%). The majority (89%) found nutrition education equally important to receiving the WIC food package. Racial/ethnic groups differed in which WIC service they primarily valued as 20% of non-Hispanic White people rated the food package as more important than nutrition education compared to 5% of Spanish- and 6% of English-speaking Hispanic people, respectively. More Spanish (91%) and English-speaking Hispanic people (87%) than non-Hispanic white (79%) or Black people (74%) changed a behavior because of something they learned at WIC (p < 0.001). Spanish-speaking Hispanic people (90%) had the highest satisfaction with WIC nutrition education. Preferential differences among participants suggest that providing flexible options may improve program satisfaction and emphasizes the need for future studies to examine WIC services by race and ethnicity.

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A Systematic Review: The Impact of COVID-19 Policy Flexibilities on SNAP and WIC Programmatic Outcomes

Crespo-Bellido,

Headrick,

López

et al. 2024

Advances in Nutrition

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A Qualitative Examination of California WIC Participants’ and Local Agency Directors’ Experiences during the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic

Cited by 14 publications

References 12 publications

Pandemic-Era WIC Participation in Wilmington, Delaware: Participants’ Experiences and Challenges

Pandemic-Era WIC Participation in Wilmington, Delaware: Participants’ Experiences and Challenges

Racial and Ethnic Comparisons in Satisfaction with Services Provided by the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children in California

A Systematic Review: The Impact of COVID-19 Policy Flexibilities on SNAP and WIC Programmatic Outcomes

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