Eat Well Play Hard with Day Care Homes NYS Department of Health CACFP Child Care Wellness Grant

IMPROVING THE NUTRITION AND PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ENVIRONMENT IN CACFP DAY CARE HOMES Background Concept and Development Implementation Design Evaluation Design Timeline

Background

Eat Well Play Hard Strategies Established in 1998 Increase intake of fruits and vegetables (fresh) Increase consumption of low fat or fat free milk and dairy products Increase developmentally appropriate physical activity Revised to add Increase initiation, duration and exclusivity of breastfeeding Decrease screen time

Concept Development Drafted White Paper (2007) Convened external workgroup ( ) Applied for SNAP-ed funds (FFY 2010 and 2011) Hired temporary nutritionist to write curriculum ( ) Applied for CCWG (2010)

Implementation Design Goal: To gain the support and commitment of DCH providers to: Improve the nutrition and physical activity practices in their DCHs Communicate positive messages about eating healthy food and being physically active to children in care and their families

Day Care Homes Curriculum  5 Units  Each Unit Group Workshop  In-the-Home Lessons 4 intervention cycles per year 6 DCH providers per cycle Bi-monthly Lesson Extenders How the Intervention Works & - Handouts - Tool Kit - Parent Newsletter -Resource Materials - Family Event -Lesson Extenders

CCWG Application Targeted intervention for 288 DCH providers State Share: Tool kits, Expert speaker fees Subcontracts to 4 DCH Sponsors – Hire Registered Dietitians to implement project – 12 intervention cycles (24 DCH each) Advisory Committee Social media component Evaluation component – Pre and post assessments by Providers and RD’s

CCWG Results Funded for 2-years Reduced reach to 192 DCHs State share reduced 4 Sponsor contracts with RDs Reduced completed intervention cycles to 6 (32 DCHs each) – Last two cycles are not funded – Incomplete lesson extenders and post-assessments

Challenges Delays in Approving Contracts Implementation began December 2011 Scheduling problems with DCHs Drop-outs Purpose of In-home lessons RD’s knowledge and skills My Plate versus My Pyramid Restrictions on use of Social Media Evaluation design is limited

Lessons Learned Have a “back pocket” idea on hand Providers and children love activities Expect changes to your implementation design Routine technical support is valuable Data collection for evaluation is burdensome but necessary

Sandra Rhoades, R.D. M.P.H. CACFP Homes Unit Director Division of Nutrition NYS Department of Health