Essay Sample on Sustaining Physical Exercise Against Obesity: Achieving Long-Term Health Benefits

Introduction

Sustainability is the capacity of programs to continuously respond to community issues (Ishola & Cekan, 2019; Marek, n.d.; Shelton et al., 2018). In the proposed physical exercise health program aimed at decreasing the prevalence of obesity, sustainability ensures that the target audience continues to embrace the intervention even after the program has been terminated. By keeping implementing the physical exercise intervention, the children will attain the recommended duration of physical activity per day. Consequently, there is an increased likelihood that even after the program has ended, the obesity rates will continue to decline.

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Another benefit associated with the sustainability of the proposed health program is the decreased cost of achieving the desired health outcomes (Beehner, 2018; Harris et al., 2017). It is crucial to understand that after the parents and teachers have been equipped with substantial exercise-related knowledge and skills, they will transfer the same to their children. This implies that after the program has ended, no more funding will be needed to follow up on the proper implementation of the intervention since the teachers and parents are already knowledgeable and skilled.

Additionally, it has been reported that the sustainability of health programs is essential because the long-term effects are easier to examine when a program is maintained for a more extended period (Michie et al., 2018; Walugembe et al., 2019). For instance, physical exercise interventions and the impact on the prevalence of childhood obesity can only be seen many years after the intervention has been implemented. Moreover, the sustainability of the proposed program is essential because changes in community health take time to be noticed.

Usually, the changes attributed to a particular intervention can only be seen between 3 to 10 years after the program was started. The time between the onset of health program activities and effects on community health is known as the latency period (Navarro & Muntaner, 2016). Lastly, it is crucial to ensure that the proposed program is sustainable because of the potential loss of investments for the funders and stakeholders if the benefits of the program are not sustainable.

Approaches to Ensuring Sustainability in Public Health Programs

An understanding of the proper approaches to the sustainability of health programs involves adequate knowledge of the characteristics of a sustainable program. According to the WHO (2020), a sustainable program should be capable of functioning effectively for the conceivable future. This implies that upon completion of the program or its funding, the community members should continue undertaking the activities or behavior associated with the program. Second, a sustainable program is characterized by the integration of the health program to the available health services (WHO, 2020). This means that the program should be incorporated into the local dispensaries and clinics. That is, the local healthcare professionals should also be at the forefront in helping to ensure that the community members effectively implement the proposed health intervention.

There are various ways in which the physical exercise intervention aimed at reducing the prevalence of obesity in the State of Alabama can be made sustainable. First, according to the Rural Health Information Hub (2020), the sustainability of health programs can be achieved by obtaining input and support from the community and stakeholder organizations. This implies that the implementors of the program should ensure that that the community members feel that they own the program. When the community members think part and parcel of the program, there is an increased likelihood that they will be actively involved in all phases of the health program. Because of their involvement in the program, it is highly likely that the community members will learn essential knowledge and skills needed to implement physical exercise intervention.

Santella (2019) has also emphasized that community partnerships are crucial in developing practical and sustainable public health programs. By engaging the community organizations and their members in their physical activity health program and related activities, the partnership helps to generate collective interest and action. Consequently, it builds social capital and a culture of health within the community served by the health program.

Moreover, upon understanding that physical exercise intervention has a beneficial impact on the health of their children, parents and educators are more likely to continue implementing the behavior at home and school, respectively. Therefore, a formal partnership between the implementors of physical exercise intervention and key stakeholders (parents and teachers) who share a commitment to improving children's health outcomes serves an important social role.

Explanation of How the Public Health Program Will Promote Long-Term Social Change

The proposed health program will promote long-term social change in various dimensions. First, it is worth noting that the parents and teachers will be taught the importance of physical exercise intervention by healthcare professionals such as nurses. When they have understood the benefits of the intervention, there is an increased likelihood that they will ensure that their children embrace the desired behavior in their daily lives. Second, the program will promote long-term sustainable change because it does not require any capital investment once the significant stakeholders (parents and teachers) have been equipped with knowledge and skills related to physical exercise in children. The only requirement needed upon the completion of the program is for parents and teachers to ensure that the children meet daily physical exercise requirements.

References

Beehner, C. G. (2018). Spirituality, sustainability, and success: Concepts and cases. Springer.

Harris, C., Allen, K., Brooke, V., Dyer, T., Waller, C., King, R., Ramsey, W., & Mortimer, D. (2017). Sustainability in Health care by Allocating Resources Effectively (Share) 6: Investigating methods to identify, prioritise, implement and evaluate disinvestment projects in a local healthcare setting. BMC Health Services Research, 17(1), 370. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-017-2269-1

Ishola, F., & Cekan, J. (2019). Evaluating the sustainability of health programmes: A literature review. African Evaluation Journal, 7(1), 7. https://doi.org/10.4102/aej.v7i1.369

Marek, L. I. (n.d.). Sustainability Community-Based Programs. https://www.hhs.gov/ash/oah/sites/default/files/ash/oah/oah-initiatives/ta/paf_10.11_marek.pdf

Michie, S., West, R., Sheals, K., & Godinho, C. A. (2018). Evaluating the effectiveness of behavior change techniques in health-related behavior: A scoping review of methods used. Translational Behavioral Medicine, 8(2), 212-224. https://doi.org/10.1093/tbm/ibx019

Navarro, V., & Muntaner, C. (2016). The financial and economic crises and their impact on health and social well-being. Taylor & Francis.

Rural Health Information Hub. (2020). Importance of sustainability-Rural health promotion and disease prevention toolkit. https://www.ruralhealthinfo.org/toolkits/health-promotion/5/importance-of-sustainability

Santella, A. J. (2019). Master of public health competencies: A case study approach. Jones & Bartlett Learning.

Shelton, R. C., Cooper, B. R., & Stirman, S. W. (2018). The sustainability of evidence-based interventions and practices in public health and health care. Annual Review of Public Health, 39(1), 55-76. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-publhealth-040617-014731

Walugembe, D. R., Sibbald, S., Le Ber, M. J., & Kothari, A. (2019). Sustainability of public health interventions: Where are the gaps? Health Research Policy and Systems, 17(1), 8. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12961-018-0405-y

WHO. (2020). What is meant by sustainability? https://www.who.int/apoc/sustainability/definition/en/