Addressing Excess Weight in Children: Impact on Educational Goals and Interventions

Patient Education

Instructional Goals

To come to the solution of the problem of excess weight in children, certain instructional goals should be achieved:

• Increasing the literacy of children regarding those factors that may affect obesity and the consequences of the problem.
• Promoting the need to follow appropriate medical practices.
• Encouraging children to realize the importance of interventions to eliminate the dangerous consequences of the health problem under consideration.

Behavioral Objectives

According to Adams (2015), “Bloom’s taxonomy contains six categories of cognitive skills” – knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation:

1. Knowledge: the patient knows about his or her problem and seeks to solve it.
2. Comprehension: all the nuances of a particular health issue are known to the patient, and the desire for treatment is conscious.
3. Application: following the instructions and prescriptions of specialists to achieve positive outcomes.
4. Analysis: patient behavior is based on finding optimal and profitable solutions.
5. Synthesis: the patient creates conditions for access to treatment practices.
6. Evaluation: lifestyle conditions are evaluated by the patient to find appropriate conclusions.

Lesson Content

To realize all the goals and instructions set, certain educational activities should be developed. At the same time, a particular sequence of actions is to be observed to achieve maximum effect. As Chari, Warsh, Ketterer, Hossain, and Sharif (2014) note, patient education depends on the methods offered by specialists, and the quality of approaches to monitoring memorization. Thus, the following sequence of actions can be applied in this order:

Table 1. Lesson Content for Patient Education.

Learning Evaluation

Based on the tests and quizzes performed, the instructor evaluates the degree of patients’ mastering the material given. The results are satisfactory if all participants in the educational process demonstrate the understanding of the severity of the described problem and are aware of its consequences and possible methods of treatment. If it cannot be achieved, additional training should be conducted to master the material given, otherwise, the whole course will pass in vain. About childhood obesity, young patients should show that they know all the risk factors and the ways to combat the disease.

Family Education

Instructional Goals

• Increasing literacy among parents to help children and control their behavioral habits.
• Receiving new skills needed in case of emergency help to patients.

Behavioral Objectives

1. Knowledge: additional information about the problems of children, which parents may not know.
2. Comprehension: an integrated approach to controlling the behavioral habits of children.
3. Application: using new knowledge to assess health status and take relevant measures.
4. Analysis: searching for possible strategies for improving the health of children based on the information received.
5. Synthesis: highlighting the most significant and pressing problems for intervention.
6. Evaluation: evaluating the success of the practices used regarding treatment outcomes.

Lesson Content

Table 2. Lesson Content for Family Education.

Learning Evaluation

Based on the results of parents’ education, it is possible to conclude their awareness of their children’s problems. Moreover, the physical condition of adults also deserves attention since, as Chung et al. (2016) note, heredity is one of the factors of childhood obesity. Health indicators of family members may be significant criteria, and the appropriate course of treatment can be assigned based on specific findings. Therefore, adults should be aware of all the features of the lifestyle and the consequences that this ailment can bear.

Staff Development

Instructional Goals

• To promote the improvement of the skills of junior medical personnel about helping children with obesity.
• To offer new ways of care based on modern techniques and practices.

Behavioral Objectives

1. Knowledge: the knowledge of the main symptoms and consequences of the disease.
2. Comprehension: grouping available skills for assistance in any case.
3. Application: using theoretical knowledge in practice to help young patients with obesity.
4. Analysis: the search for optimal ways to implement the information received.
5. Synthesis: the separation of knowledge by different categories of interventions.
6. Evaluation: the assessment of the effectiveness of the work performed based on real patient outcomes.

Lesson Content

Table 3. Lesson Content for Staff Development.

Learning Evaluation

The involvement of medical personnel to improve employees’ professional skills is an effective technique, and their results may be evaluated in terms of the possibility of applying their knowledge in practice. According to Quelly (2014), the cooperation of nurses and their collaborative work “may be an effective strategy for childhood obesity prevention” (p. 292). Furthermore, trained personnel can respond quickly in case of complications, which can be an important factor during the treatment process. The lack of experience and the inability to absorb the material given is the reason for the repetition of the information received. Therefore, the assessment of training and upgrading of medical staff should be moderately strict and adequate.

References

Adams, N. E. (2015). Bloom’s taxonomy of cognitive learning objectives. Journal of the Medical Library Association: JMLA, 103(3), 152-153. Web.

Chari, R., Warsh, J., Ketterer, T., Hossain, J., & Sharif, I. (2014). Association between health literacy and child and adolescent obesity. Patient Education and Counseling, 94(1), 61-66. Web.

Chung, A., Backholer, K., Wong, E., Palermo, C., Keating, C., & Peeters, A. (2016). Trends in child and adolescent obesity prevalence in economically advanced countries according to socioeconomic position: A systematic review. Obesity Reviews, 17(3), 276-295. Web.

Quelly, S. B. (2014). Influence of perceptions on school nurse practices to prevent childhood obesity. The Journal of School Nursing, 30(4), 292-302. Web.