Effectiveness and implementation of an obesity prevention intervention: the HeLP-her Rural cluster randomised controlled trial

Catherine B Lombard, Cheryce L Harrison, Samantha L Kozica, Sophia Zoungas, Catherine Keating, Helena J Teede
2014 BMC Public Health  
To impact on the obesity epidemic, interventions that prevent weight gain across populations are urgently needed. However, even the most efficacious interventions will have little impact on obesity prevention unless they are successfully implemented in diverse populations and settings. Implementation research takes isolated efficacy studies into practice and policy and is particularly important in obesity prevention where there is an urgent need to accelerate the evidence to practice cycle.
more » ... ite the recognised need, few obesity prevention interventions have been implemented in real life settings and to our knowledge rarely target rural communities. Methods: Here we describe the rationale, design and implementation of a Healthy Lifestyle Program for women living in small rural communities (HeLP-her Rural). The primary goal of HeLP-her Rural is to prevent weight gain using a low intensity, self-management intervention. Six hundred women from 42 small rural communities in Australia will be randomised as clusters (n-21 control towns and n = 21 intervention towns). A pragmatic randomised controlled trial methodology will test efficacy and a comprehensive mixed methods community evaluation and cost analysis will inform effectiveness and implementation of this novel prevention program.
doi:10.1186/1471-2458-14-608 pmid:24930478 pmcid:PMC4071794 fatcat:efvdknrkovahzifmd7edzslyji