Competency-Based Approaches to Community Health (COACH) is a randomized controlled trial of a family-centered, community-based, and individually-tailored behavioral intervention for childhood obesity among Latino pre-school children. COACH focuses on improving personal agency for health behavior change by tailoring content to overcome contextual barriers. The intervention focuses on diet, physical activity, sleep, media use, and engaged parenting. The content is individually adapted based on routine assessments of competency in specific health behaviors using a mobile health platform and novel measurement tools developed by our team. In response to these regular assessments, health coaches provide tailored health behavior change strategies to help families focus on the areas where they decide to improve the most. The intervention consists of a 15-week group-based intensive phase, with weekly sessions delivered by health coaches in community centers. Following weekly sessions, a 3-month maintenance phase of the intervention consists of twice monthly coaching calls for participants to focus on individual health goals for their families. The primary outcome of the trial is child body mass index trajectory over 1 year. Secondary outcomes include parent body mass index change, child waist circumference, child diet, child physical activity, and other psychosocial mediators of child health behavior change. The control arm consists of a school readiness intervention, delivered by the Nashville Public Library. By applying a personalized approach to child behavior change, in the setting of both family and community, COACH aims to develop sustainable solutions for childhood obesity by supporting healthy childhood growth in low-income, minority preschool children.
Keywords: Behavioral intervention; Childhood obesity; Personal agency.
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