A partnership model (Co-fam) for health promotion and early prevention of obesity – co-design and evaluation of family support for school and primary health care

Purpose and aimsThe aim is to co-design and evaluate a novel model for family support (Co-fam) linking school and primary health care to effectively promote health and prevent and manage obesity among children 6-12-years.

Two evidence-based family support programs, the universal Healthy School Start and the targeted More and Less will be adapted and combined and delivered in a municipality with high levels of childhood obesity.

We hypothesize that Co-fam is effective and feasible to implement with high fidelity and acceptable to professionals and families.Project organization, timeplan and methodsThe project will be carried out over 4-years consisting of a preparation phase where the model will be co-designed with stakeholders and an implementation and evaluation phase based on an implementation framework.

Evaluation will take place in a controlled hybrid type-2 effectiveness-implementation study using mixed methods. Quantitative data will be collected on child and parent level and on fidelity to the model, and costs.

Interviews will be performed with personnel and parents to assess acceptability and feasibility.SignificanceBridging the gap between school and primary health care to reduce obesity and health inequalities has been urgently requested in national guidelines and recommendations but is still not done.

By combining a universal and a targeted program we will create a new model tailored to family needs leaving no child behind and with great potential to be scaled up.