Logic Model: Facilitating Policy and Environment Change Promoting Physical Activity and Healthy Eating in Schools

The Logic Model: Facilitating Policy and Environmental Change Promoting Physical Activity and Healthy Eating in Schools (pdf version, 1 page) was developed by the team. It illustrates impact of implementing policy and environment change promoting physical activity and healthy eating in schools.

Below is a listing of components of the logic model. It illustrates that resources such as staff, funding, and methodologies, facilitate activties related to environmental and policy approach. Impact may be seen in the policies that increase accessibility to healthy food options or increase physical activity, changes in environment such as increased availability of healthy foods; and mediating behaviors such as increased purchasing of healthy foods, and decreased use of foods as reward. These policies would have a positive impact on healthy behaviors

Resources

Staff

  • County health department staff
  • School staff
  • Other partners

Funding

  • 2020 funding
  • Other State funding
  • Eat Well Play Hard Program
  • Healthy Heart Program
  • County in-kind
  • School/partners in-kind

Frameworks/Practice

  • Institute of Healthcare Improvement (IHI) Collaborative Framework
  • Best practices in school physical activity and nutrition interventions

Outcomes

Activities

Environment and policy approach to improving school wellness

  • Identification of specific improvement project within a school environment
  • Assessment of wellness policy and school buildings
  • Partnership development
  • Development and formal adoption of improved policy
  • Support implementation within schools
  • Monitor implementation and outcomes

These activities are informed and improved by adoption of the Institute of Healthcare Improvement's (IHI) Breakthrough Series Collaborative Methodology. This includes:

  • Pre-work: Identify best practices, development of change packet, form advisory committee, draft charter, identify specific projects, identify stakeholders.
  • Learning Sessions 1, 2 and 3: Select strategies, establish goals, identify specific measures for assessing progress to goals, implementation using Plan-Do-Study-Act, measures for feedback,
  • Ongoing improvement through peer-to-peer learning, consultation with New York State Department of Health and Improvement Methodology consultant.

Policy

Change and adoption of wellness policies

  • Increasing opportunities for physical activity during and after school hours
  • Increasing accessibility of healthy food options
  • Decreasing accessibility of unhealthy food options

This will be followed by implementation of policies within schools.

Environment (example)

  • Increasing availability of healthy food options
  • Increasing availability of fresh fruits and vegetables at school
  • Decreasing availability of high-caloric density foods
    • in vending machines
    • through a la carte
    • in school stores
    • through school fundraising activities
  • Increasing time in school day for physical activity
  • Increasing availability of after-school physical activity programs
  • Increasing or improving facilities for physical activity

Mediating behaviors (examples)

Student

  • Purchasing healthier foods
  • Participation in physical activity during physical education class
  • Participation in after school physical activity opportunities

Teacher/Staff Behavior

  • Stop the use of food as reward
  • Adherence to policy
  • Use of food preparation techniques
  • Incorporating active physical activity during physical education class

Target behaviors

  • Increased physical activity at school during and after school
  • Increased consumption of healthy food options at school
  • Decreased consumption of unhealthy food options at school

Impacting the behaviors through policy and environmental change would decrease overweight and obesity among school-aged children.