Campbell County Memorial Hospital - Individuals Combining Activity and Nutrition (ICAN)

Overview

The program director created the Individuals Combining Activity and Nutrition (ICAN) pilot program as a fun and upbeat way to reach especially sedentary children, ages 5 to 11, and help them find ways to exercise and eat better for the long term. The Fall and Winter ICAN class offers an array of entertaining games and approaches, including many nutrition activities incorporating ChooseMyPlate; fun games that challenge endurance, balance, and agility; a nutrition Jeopardy!®-like game designed by the program director; multiple obstacle courses designed by the students, on which they time themselves; food and activity logs, which students maintain; and homework that requires students to identify foods that contain the nutrients they are currently studying in class. The program builds on current health topics the children are learning in the classroom through the Healthy Schools Initiative, and helps create and support a positive relationship with food and activity.

During summer 2011, the ICAN Community Garden Project was developed. The local community garden allowed the program to garden for free, decreasing many costs. The participants help plan, plant, and maintain the garden throughout the summer. They also attend nutrition lessons at the garden site. The first summer, five kids participated through the entire summer. The summer of 2012 had eight participants. In 2013, the garden will be planted at one of the local elementary schools with many other community organizations contributing to the lessons. These organizations include City of Gillette, Campbell County Weed and Pest, Campbell County Conservation District, and Campbell County Extension Office.

Impact

Although Wyoming kids have been identified as relatively healthy in community assessments, this trend is starting to decline. The small pilot program, which began in January 2010, consisted of three six-week sessions. Eight students participated in the pilot program. Of these students, all made improvements in nutrition knowledge, and six had improved fitness. The program has since moved from a hospital location to Wagonwheel Elementary School, and runs throughout the school year. The current program has 15 participants with an occasional drop-in. Parents and younger siblings participate as well. All children have shown improvement in both nutritional knowledge and physical activity.

Challenges/success factors

Past challenges included the struggle some parents faced in transporting their children to the class at the hospital; the fee for the class, which put it out of reach for some families; and the newness of the program, which meant that not all the tools and games that the program director wanted to be part of the program could be obtained or developed in time. The program director attributes the program’s success to the enthusiastic support it has received from management on all levels; collaborative efforts with public health, school counselors, radio stations, and other community resources to spread the word about the program; and special help from the schools, which have invited her to bring the program directly into the schools next year.

The program is a much greater success now that it is part of the afterschool schedule at Wagonwheel Elementary. It also recently received grant funding, which allows students to participate at no cost and provides for improved access to games and activities.

Future direction/sustainability

Campbell County Memorial Hospital continues to apply for grants in order to expand the program to other elementary schools in the district, specifically, Title 1schools. The long-term goal would be to have ICAN as an afterschool option at every school and at least half the schools with an established garden. All gardens are open to community participation, not just those who attend that particular school.

Advice to others

Taking the following steps will help ensure the program’s success:

• Have a team to handle tasks such as marketing. You can’t have too much advertising.
• Don’t worry about low numbers at first. One very successful program at the hospital, working with children and sports, took four to five years to really get going.
• Obtain as much community support as possible. This will make many tasks more achievable.
• Always find ways to change and grow.

Contact: Abby Miller
Program Director
Telephone: 307-688-8009
E-mail: abigail.miller@cchm.net