Exploratory Research to Design a School Nurse-Delivered Intervention to Treat Adolescent Overweight and Obesity

Use of Focus Groups to Inform a Youth Diabetes Prevention Model

“…Similar to findings in this study, others have described how peer considerations may supersede personal judgment to eat well, 28 how peer interactions increase both the availability of unhealthy food and the social pressure to eat it, 14,21,24,30,37 and how friends may make negative comments when one tries to eat healthy. 38 Previous studies identified family support (including cohesion, modeling and monitoring) as a positive influence on lifestyle behaviors, 24,39 but youth in this study spoke mostly about the negative influences of both family and friends on their behaviors.…”

“…37,51 Important considerations in program development include who teens identify as the desired messengers (slightly older peers) and how to deliver messages (through a combination of in-person group workshops and technology based tools). Other general considerations include ensuring confidentiality, 37 convenient program location, 51 recognition of competing demands, 37 reducing obesity related stigma, 37,51 and making programs fun/interactive. 51 Using focus group results, researchers worked with community partners to tailor a youth diabetes prevention model.…”

A School Nurse‐Delivered Intervention for Overweight and Obese Adolescents

“…Formative research conducted with focus groups of overweight and obese adolescents, parents, school nurses, and school staff informed development of the intervention protocol and accompanying student booklet. 15 Such use of formative research to inform intervention design has been found to be valuable in other community-based obesity intervention development in the high school setting. 16 School nurses were trained through a daylong group training session which included (1) a brief didactic presentation on the scope of the problem of adolescent obesity, effects of obesity on adolescents, and expert committee recommendations for the treatment of overweight and obesity in youth; (2) review of the counseling intervention protocol and accompanying student booklet while observing a demonstration of the intervention; and (3) the conduct of role-play exercises in which the nurses practiced delivering the intervention protocol, received feedback from study investigators, and processed as a group after each exercise (this portion took the majority of the training time).…”

Caregiver Asthma in Urban Families

“…It is also our recommendation that future studies highlight the unique role of the school nurse, in particular in regard to collaboration with the family and child, in efforts to facilitate self-management and develop comprehensive education plans. There are many potential implications for the role of the school nurse in developing a family-focused intervention to improve outcomes for asthma-related school absenteeism, including a school nurse–led intervention (Gellar et al, 2012). …”