Meeting Assignment

· Increased education on proper nutrition with incorporation of physical activity to assist in lowering childhood obesity with overall goal of lowering nation heart disease incidence

Facts About Childhood Obesity

· Defined as having excess body fat

· Body mass index (BMI) measurement used to determine obesity (BMI is a person’s weight in kilograms divided by the square of a person’s height in meters)

· Overweight children 2-18 is BMI at or above 85th percentile

· Obesity in children 2-18 is BMI at or above 95th percentile

Long Term Risks Related to Childhood Obesity

· Children with obesity are at higher risk for developing chronic health conditions or diseases (asthma, sleep apnea, bone and joint problems, type 2 diabetes mellitus, and increase risk factors for heart disease)

· These children are at risk for increased risk of being bullied which can lead to (social isolation, lowered self-esteem, and depression)

· Long term childhood obesity can increase risk of obesity as adult which increases risk of developing (heart disease, type 2 diabetes mellitus, metabolic syndrome, and many types of cancer)

Estimated Lifetime Cost related to Childhood Obesity

Facts About the Benefits of Physical Activity and Nutrition Education

· Improved physical fitness thus decreasing obesity related diseases

· Improved skill and motor development

· Assists in teaching self-discipline

· Development of responsibility over own fitness

· Influences moral development, leadership, and improves cooperation with others

· Reduced stress and anxiety, Teaches respect

· Improves academic performance

· How Can We Achieve a Reduction in Childhood Obesity Rates?

· Create more community-based programs with expenditure of $10/person to save $16 Billion annually within 5 years

· Saving generate a return of $5.60 for every $1 spend

· Medicare saves greater than $5 Billion

· Medicaid saves greater than $ 1.9 Billion

· Allows for incorporation of physical and nutritional education into curricula across the state with ability to pay staff with increased savings

Summary

· Implementing change in how children are educated to make healthier choices and lifestyle modifications could help Mississippi no longer be classified as the most obese state in the US

· Further savings of the National Budget would occur due to decreases in the number of persons suffering from other obesity related diseases

· Assisting in better educating will also help to lower the number of obese adults, thus decreasing the unemployment and disability portions of the National Budget as well

· Proper education for healthy lifestyle modifications will also assist in lowering the prevalence of mental health issues related to lower self-esteem and depression related to obesity and living with extensive health related issues

Supporting Organizations

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

World Health Organization

U.S. Food and Drug Administration

Highmark Foundation

Contact Information:

Name

Email address

Phone number

Legislative Meeting Write Up

Working as a CVICU nurse over the past couple of years has brought to my attention the correlation of our daily behaviors and habits and our overall health. Starting graduate school for Family Nurse Practitioner, allowed me to be challenged in finding areas of concern in healthcare and comparing policy and the policy making process. One of the last assignments, required finding a health concern and meeting with a local legislature to discuss the issue.

Every assignment that I could correlate to being a CVICU nurse this semester was done heart health in mind. As I started this assignment, I began thinking how can we reduce the incidence of heart failure and heart related issues that we are not genetically predisposed to have. I have nieces in elementary school in two different counties in North Mississippi and two second cousins in Hattiesburg, MS. I spoke with all of these children and asked when they look around their classroom, how many children they would say were overweight and if they had physical education with nutrition-based education in class. My nieces both said they only have recess and that is determined by the weather. They both stated that close to half of the students they see daily would be classified as overweight. My cousins in Hattiesburg determined the same as far as physical education, but said less than half would be classified and overweight. In doing research on obesity, I discovered that the State of Mississippi has been determined as the unhealthiest state in the nation for three years in a row.

Obesity is a serious issue that causes numerous other health problems which can be prevented. Problems such as heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, and cancer. I then began looking up guidelines or policy in the state of Mississippi regarding physical education in schools. What I found versus what my nieces and cousins are telling me were two different things. Mississippi state policy 37-13-134 determines that children in K-8 are to have 150 minutes a week of instructed activity with 45 minutes of nutrition education. Students grade 9-12 are to have half the school year of the same instructed activity and nutrition education, but extracurricular activities are taken as part of this requirement. We as nurses know that the cost of treating diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, and cancer are extremely expensive. Obesity increases the chances of developing such diseases to an alarming rate. I determined in my research that the cost of healthcare related to obesity and children is $14 Billion per year and increases the health care cost of each obese child by $19,000 per child per year. The cost of treating diseases caused by being obese is $190.2 Billion per year, which is 21% of the annual budget allowed for health care spending.

After compiling all the information and requirements for the assignment, I had to meet with local representatives. I will admit that I have not studied the ladder of politics in a long time and was really unsure of where to start. I googled the representatives in my area, the first person that came up was my local alderman. I emailed her and set up a meeting, we discussed the information and talked in length about different things she observes when she goes to have lunch with her grandchildren. She also informed me that the better person for me to meet with to help with this situation would be our local state representative, Dana Criswell. She gave me his information, as well as contacted him letting him know I would be in contact. I met with Mr. Criswell for well over an hour at our local Starbucks. I first gave him a synopsis of the course and what I had learned about being a nurse and health care policy. I indicated to him that the course helped to better direct and inform why things are done the way they are and that policy directs the majority of healthcare. He even started the conversation of nurse practitioner practice abilities have improved for the benefit of the nurse practitioner in the state over the last couple of years. We also discussed the importance of nurses and advanced practice nurses using their voice to educate them when voting on a bill. He stated that before he got into politics, he was reluctant to reach out to representatives on issues that concerned him because he thought they were too busy to listen to him. He stated he felt this way for a long time until an issue really bothered him and he emailed his local representative and encouraged 14 other people to send emails. This process got the issue taken off the agenda and has not been a topic since. He then realized that all it takes if for someone to speak up and they will be listened to. He also stated that speaking to the right person will assist in getting the issue understood better.

Completing the assignment required to find a need for a change to an already existing policy or making a modification to it. My request was to enforce the implementation of suggested physical education time in schools (K-8 150min/week physical activity-based instruction; 9-12 ½ carnegic unit of physical education and ½ carnegic unit heath education with extracurricular organized sport able to supplement), and increase education on proper nutrition with incorporation of physical activity to assist in lowering childhood obesity with overall goal of lowering nation heart disease incidence. I also brought in statistics about obesity and the cost of treating children with obesity. The research then focused on the benefits of incorporating physical education into these children’s lives, which promoted healthier lifestyles, increased academic abilities, and decreased the likelihood of developing certain diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, hypertension, and certain cancers. The research for this assignment also included potential for change, which included community outreach that focused on first educating the parents of the potential for adverse complications related to childhood obesity. This proposal incorporated spending $10 per person with the savings of $16 Billion in five years. This would then allow for spending of these funds elsewhere with the potential to implement these policies into action for these at-risk children.

The conversation with Mr. Criswell was almost a brainstorming meeting of how this could get put on an agenda, along with how I could help raise the awareness of this issue that he agreed was a problem. We discussed the Families First program, which is a program that helps families that receive government assistance with learning needs to help advance to no longer needing the assistance. The program helps with GEDs, job training/skills, family planning, and finding not for profit organizations that can help with their needs. It was suggested to reach out to this organization in attempt to educated and raise awareness to this issue. He suggested for me to use my voice as a registered nurse and future Family Nurse Practitioner and meet with representatives from PTA organization about speaking at a meeting. The ability to speak at PTA meetings would be a way to start the education process of parents on the importance of physical activity and nutrition in school age children. He also suggested to reach out to my district Board of Education Representative, Milton Nichols and speak with him regarding these issues. Mr. Criswell also agreed to speak with Milton Nichols on my behalf at this time so I could complete the semester, but gave me great insight to how easy it is to get your voice heard. I was able to meet with my alderman on a Wednesday and have coffee the very next morning with Mr. Criswell and speak on this issue with him. If given the time with work and school scheduling, I would be interested in speaking with parents across Olive Branch, MS regarding their opinion on incorporating physical education back into schools to benefit their children and attempting to get Mr. Nichols to bring this issue up on the next curriculum agenda.

I will admit that many assignments over the course of the semester, I thought to myself, I could never research a topic of concern to me and meet with someone in legislature to attempt to make change. Many of the reasons why I felt this could not be done was time constraints on my part and the representative’s part. I now see that they need us to reach out to them on topic we feel strongly about and help to educate them on why their vote should be one way or the other. I also know that it does not take many people to reach them to draw attention to a subject/issue. I also realize after talking with my alderman and state representative that I should want to stay in contact with them regarding healthcare issues because they are not as informed as health care professionals because they only experience one side of the system. Healthcare professions experience a multitude of sides within the system and can look at the big picture better. This assignment showed me that as a nurse, graduate student, or future advance practice nurse, that not much time is required to meet with local representatives and speak on an issue. I also better understand the need to keep up with agenda related to health care policy and voice my concern/opinion when I feel something is not going to be a positive change and continue to help optimize patient care.

Information for Representatives

Joy Henderson-Alderman

[email protected]

901-413-8361

Dana Criswell-Mississippi House of Representatives

Dear Representative Dana Criswell,

My name is XXXXXX, I am currently a registered nurse enrolled in the Family Nurse Practitioner program at Loewenberg School of Nursing with The University of Memphis. I am enrolled in a Health Care Policy class and in need of scheduling a meeting to meet with you regarding necessary changes to State Statute/Policy code 37-13-134 and/or State Board of Education Policy 4012 (2008).

My concern and interest in getting these changes implemented are focused on improvement of long-term health in these children. These children are at increased risk of developing heart disease as adults. Management of heart disease is very costly and depletes the health care budget quickly. Providing these children with proper instruction and direction early, will benefit their overall physical and health status. The benefit to improving this early also helps the bottom line of the budget and can assist in transferring funds to other necessary areas.

I ask that we find a way to better incorporate physical education with focus on nutrition in all levels of academics to assist with the growing issue of childhood obesity. The overall goal is to also keep the State of Mississippi from being at the top of the unhealthiest list annually. I look forward to meeting with you to discuss this concern and hopefully to contribute to a change that will help these children.

Sincerely,

Name

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Email Address

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