Active travelling to school is not associated with increased total daily physical activity levels, or reduced obesity and cardiovascular/pulmonary health parameters in 10-12-year olds: a cross-sectional cohort study.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Childhood obesity has increased enormously. Several lifestyle factors have been implicated, including decreased physical activity, partially involving a decline in active travel to school. We aimed to establish the association between school transport mode and physical activity levels of primary 6 and 7 children (aged 10-12). Secondary outcomes were body mass index standard deviation scores, blood pressure levels and lung function. SUBJECTS/METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted with a total number of 432 children from three primary schools in North East Scotland. Actigraph accelerometers were used to provide objective measures of physical activity. Ninety-two children in primary 6 and 90 children in primary 7 (40 in common) had adequate data. Modes of transport to school were assessed by a questionnaire. Two hundred and seventeen children in primary 6 and one hundred and sixty-five in primary 7 returned adequate questionnaires. Children who used active transport modes for >70% of their journeys to school over the week were coded as active travellers and <30% were coded as passive travellers. All children also had height, weight, blood pressure levels and lung function measured. RESULTS: Children who lived further away from school, and in more expensive properties were more likely to travel passively to school. Actively commuting children (70% walking) had significantly higher activity levels than passive commuters during the 30 min that encompassed their journey to and from school. However, there were no significant differences between active and passive school travellers in total daily physical activity, BMI SDS, and both systolic and diastolic blood pressure and lung function. CONCLUSIONS: There was no evidence that more days of active travel to school had a significant influence on total physical activity, obesity and related health parameters. Public health interventions promoting active travel to school may have limited success in quelling the childhood obesity epidemic.

Students as catalysts to increase community pharmacy-led direct patient care services.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the impact on community pharmacy service development of a faculty-student-pharmacist collaborative program offered by five U.S. colleges. SETTING: Colleges of pharmacy and community pharmacies in Arizona, Illinois, Ohio, Utah, and West Virginia. PRACTICE DESCRIPTION: Partner for Promotion (PFP) is an elective, longitudinal advanced pharmacy practice experience (APPE) focused on enhancement of community pharmacy management skills, specifically the development and implementation of direct patient care services. This faculty-student-pharmacist collaborative model has been implemented in five U.S. colleges of pharmacy beyond the originating institution. EVALUATION: Data on pharmacy demographics and the impact of PFP on service creation and longevity at these partnering schools were reported via annual online surveys completed by faculty directors at each partnering college of pharmacy. RESULTS: Over a 3-year period, 19 pharmacy teams across five states worked to create a total of 15 direct patient care services, 12 of which were still being offered to patients at the time of data collection (80% longevity). The PFP program guided 38 students through the process of developing and implementing a sustainable service at a community pharmacy. All participating faculty from partnering colleges of pharmacy (100%) indicated that PFP model materials were "very useful" (4-point Likert scale; 1, not useful, to 4, very useful), and all five colleges plan to continue offering the program moving forward. CONCLUSION: The PFP model of training and service development can have a positive impact on the pharmacy profession, serve as an avenue for training students in the development of clinical services, and be a catalyst for establishing the growth of community pharmacy as a patient-centered, service-oriented partner in the health care system.