Availability and Quality of Physical Activity Resources in Neighborhood Parks for Pregnant Women and Women of Childbearing Age.

Neighborhood parks help women engage in physical activity (PA). We used the physical activity resources assessment instrument to determine the availability, quality and quantity of physical features, and amenities in 19 neighborhood parks randomly selected from the Jackson, Mississippi, Metropolitan Statistical Area. Madison County averaged the most quality PA features (mean, 13) and quality PA amenities (mean, 25.8), and it averaged the least quality incivilities (mean, 1.6). The total neighborhood parks quality physical activity resources (QPAR) was determined by a composite index QPAR of features, amenities, and incivilities. Neighborhood parks' QPAR index was 545 (mean, 28.7), showing less use of parks. Quality PA features were significantly (P < .01) associated with quality PA amenities.

Evaluating Levels of Community Participation in a University-Community Partnership: The Jackson Heart Study.

OBJECTIVE: This research was designed to evaluate the perceptions of the Jackson Heart Study (JHS) community relating to their levels of involvement in JHS activities that were developed to address health disparities and promote health education and health promotion. METHODS: The participants for this study comprised 128 community members, who included JHS participants, as well as family members and other friends of the JHS who resided in the JHS community of Hinds, Madison, and Rankin Counties in Mississippi and attended the JHS Annual Celebration of Life. We used the Chi-Square test to analyze the participants' responses to the survey questions developed to address the six areas of focus: (1) ways to increase participation in community outreach activities; (2) reasons for participating in community outreach activities; (3) interest in research participation; (4) factors influencing engagement; (5) Participants' preferences for communicating; (6) Chronic disease prevalence. RESULTS: Participants residing in rural counties perceived television and radio as a medium to increase participation; More female respondents cited trust working with the JSU JHS Community Outreach Center (CORC) as a reason for remaining engaged in the community outreach activities; younger participants under 66 years of age recommended social media as a way to increase participation; participants residing in the rural areas saw their participation in the community outreach activities as a way to address community health problems. CONCLUSIONS: The knowledge gained from the details provided by the JHS community members can be used to refine research studies in existence, while promoting their sustainability.

Twenty Years of Leading the Way among Cohort Studies in Community-Driven Outreach and Engagement: Jackson State University/Jackson Heart Study.

BACKGROUND: History has recorded the tremendous concerns and apprehension expressed by African Americans about participating in research studies. This review enumerates the collaborative techniques that were utilized by the Jackson State University (JSU) Jackson Heart Study (JHS) community-focused team to facilitate recruitment and retention of the JHS cohort and to implement health education and health promotion in the JHS communities. METHODS: This review describes the evolution of the JSU JHS community initiatives, an innovative community-driven operation, during the period 1999-2018. RESULTS: JSU JHS community-focused investigators published approximately 20 manuscripts, including community-led research and publications with community lead authors and co-authors, research and publications in collaboration with other JHS staff, through other JSU-funded projects. The JSU JHS community-focused unit also initiated the JHS Community Training Activities, developed the Community Health Advisory Network (CHAN), and trained and certified 137 Community Health Advisors. In addition, the JSU JHS community-focused unit developed the Collaborative Community Science Model (CCSM) that symbolized its approach to community engagement and outreach, and a Trust Scale for ascertaining African Americans' willingness to engage in biomedical research collaborations. CONCLUSION: This review offers educators, public health professionals, and research investigators a useful starting point for the development, selection, or improvement of techniques to motivate, inspire, and engage community residents in a community-academia partnership that yielded maximum benefits in the areas of health education, health promotion and interventions, and biomedical research. Substantial, meaningful community engagement is possible when prioritizing elimination of health disparities and long-term improvement in health care access in the target populations.

Operational and Management Structure of the Jackson Heart Study Community Outreach Center.

The authors identified the key characteristics of the Jackson Heart Study Community Outreach Center as it worked to embed a sustainable, positive impact on the surrounding communities by engaging community partners to facilitate the mission of the Jackson Heart Study. This report provides an overview of the practice and infrastructure.

Text Messaging: An Intervention to Increase Physical Activity among African American Participants in a Faith-Based, Competitive Weight Loss Program.

African American adults are less likely to meet the recommended physical activity guidelines for aerobic and muscle-strengthening activity than Caucasian adults. The purpose of this study was to assess whether a text message intervention would increase physical activity in this population. This pilot study used a pre-/post-questionnaire non-randomized design. Participants in a faith-based weight loss competition who agreed to participate in the text messaging were assigned to the intervention group (n = 52). Participants who declined to participate in the intervention, but agreed to participate in the study, were assigned to the control group (n = 30). The text messages provided strategies for increasing physical activity and were based on constructs of the Health Belief Model and the Information-Motivation-Behavioral Skills Model. Chi square tests determined the intervention group participants increased exercise time by approximately eight percent (p = 0.03), while the control group's exercise time remained constant. The intervention group increased walking and running. The control group increased running. Most participants indicated that the health text messages were effective. The results of this pilot study suggest that text messaging may be an effective method for providing options for motivating individuals to increase physical activity.