Conducting needs assessment using the comprehensive participatory planning and evaluation model to develop nutrition and physical activity interventions in a rural community in the Mississippi delta.
BACKGROUND
Members of a Lower Mississippi Delta community and university partners used the Comprehensive Participatory Planning and Evaluation (CPPE) model to assess nutrition and health problems and develop a menu of interventions.


OBJECTIVE
We sought to identify and prioritize nutrition and physical activity problems in the community and to identify interventions to address the problems.


METHODS
Community members and university partners used the CPPE process to identify and prioritize nutrition and physical activity problems. The participants developed causal models to break down the identified problems to their root causes. They then developed a menu of interventions and criteria to rank the interventions.


RESULTS
The identified problems were intake of unhealthy foods, lack of nutrition education, and lack of adequate physical activity. The menu of interventions consisted of seven objectives to address poor nutrition and physical activity as well as a total of 19 interventions to meet these objectives.


CONCLUSIONS
Directly involving community members in identifying health problems and solutions results in the development of interventions that are likely to have greater acceptability with the community.
Ndirangu
Murugi
M
Center for Global Health and Economic Development, The Earth Institute, Columbia University, USA.
Perkins
Helen
H
Yadrick
Kathleen
K
West
Jennifer Rebecca
JR
Bogle
Margaret L
ML
Avis-Williams
Amanda
A
Santell
Ross
R
Connell
Carol Lawson
CL
D055812:Community-Based Participatory Research / Q000379:methods*; D003159:Community-Institutional Relations; D015444:Exercise; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006293:Health Promotion; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008019:Life Style; D008922:Mississippi; D020380:Needs Assessment; D009748:Nutrition Disorders / Q000517:prevention & control; D012424:Rural Population