The Trail Guide curriculum for childhood obesity treatment program model

Unmet Need

Childhood obesity is an ongoing health concern involving cardiometabolic risk, reduced quality of life and long-term health consequences. Current child obesity treatment guidelines recommend 26 or more hours of behavior treatment, delivered over a six-month period in a multidisciplinary weight management clinic. However, these guidelines are not feasible in real-world settings where clinic visits are costly and poorly reimbursed, and attrition is high, particularly among the most vulnerable children. Current research indicates that integrated clinic-community partnerships may increase the improve the effectiveness of child obesity treatment. Therefore, there is a need for materials supporting and facilitating their implementation.

Technology

Duke researchers have developed a curriculum and comprehensive implementation platform, along with required materials lists, training videos, checklists, supportive documentation, and live technical assistance to support a novel clinic-community partnership for pediatric obesity treatment. Named “The TrailGuide” and the “Fit Together” curriculum, these paired materials provide comprehensive instructions and tools for developing a new collaboration between Pediatric Clinic and Parks and Recreation partners who wish to deliver the intervention. It contains information, tools, and resources for building a successful program, including thorough descriptions of roles of personnel involved, clinic referral strategies, invoice templates, expected timelines, planning tools and characteristics to consider, curriculum and activity examples.

Advantages

• Facilitates local clinic-community partnerships, supports the development of an integrated childhood obesity treatment program.
• Effective, engaging, and scalable obesity treatment option for low-income and racially diverse children.
• Digital access to existing training materials.