Skip to content

IMplementation of the Family Support PRogramme A Healthy School Start to Prevent OVErweight and Obesity (IMPROVE)

IMplementation and Evaluation of the School-based Family Support PRogramme A Healthy School Start to Promote Child Health and Prevent OVErweight and Obesity (IMPROVE) - Study Protocol for a Cluster-randomized Trial

Status
Completed
Phases
NA
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT04984421
Acronym
IMPROVE
Enrollment
1634
Registered
2021-07-30
Start date
2021-09-01
Completion date
2024-09-30
Last updated
2025-05-30

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2, Overnutrition, Child, Overweight, Childhood, Pediatric Obesity, Prediabetic State

Keywords

BMI, Fidelity, Hybrid type 3 design, Health promotion, Implementation strategies, Primary health care, School health care, Nutrition

Brief summary

IMPROVE is an implementation study aiming to explore the effects of two bundled implementation strategies on the intervention fidelity of the Healthy School Start program (primary outcome) while simultaneously monitoring effects on health outcomes of children and parents (secondary outcomes). Thirty schools in two municipalities will receive the HSS program reaching about 1400 families per school year, for two years.

Detailed description

IMPROVE aims to conduct a hybrid type 3 evaluation design to test the effects of bundled implementation strategies on the intervention fidelity (primary outcome) of the Healthy School Start (HSS) program while simultaneously monitoring effects on health outcomes of children and parents (secondary outcomes). The HSS is a 4-component family support program for children starting school (5-7 years of age) promoting healthy dietary habits and physical activity in the home environment to prevent childhood obesity and parent risk of developing type 2 diabetes. IMPROVE is a cluster-randomized controlled trial with two arms to evaluate and compare the effects of two different bundles of implementation strategies on intervention fidelity expressed as adherence and responsiveness at 12 and 24 months. Thirty schools in two municipalities will participate in the study reaching about 1400 families per school year. In stakeholder workshops, key implementation determinants were identified according to the domains of the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research. Through a consensus process with stakeholders, two bundles of implementation strategies were tailored to address context-specific determinants. Schools randomly assigned to group 1 will receive bundle 1 (Basic) and group 2 will receive bundle 1+2 (Enhanced), consisting mainly of external facilitation, fidelity monitoring and feedback strategies. Secondary outcomes will include acceptability, appropriateness, feasibility, organisational readiness as perceived by school staff, child weight status and diet, and parents' risk of type 2 diabetes. Linear and ordinal regression analysis will be used to test the effect on the primary and secondary outcomes, taking clustering into consideration where needed. Process evaluation will be conducted through key stakeholder interviews to investigate experiences of the program and stakeholder perceptions on sustainability. This systematic approach to investigating the effects of two different bundles of implementation strategies tailored to context-specific determinants on the fidelity of the HSS intervention will provide new insight into feasible implementation strategies and the external supports needed for a school-based health program like the HSS to be effective and sustainable. Results will help inform how to bridge the gap between the research on school-based health programs and routine practice in schools.

Interventions

BEHAVIORALHealthy School Start

The Healthy School Start program is a universal 4-component family support program for children starting school (5-7 years of age) promoting healthy dietary habits and physical activity in the home environment to prevent childhood obesity and parents' risk of developing type 2 diabetes. It is targeting both children and parents.

Sponsors

Karolinska Institutet
Lead SponsorOTHER

Study design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
PREVENTION
Masking
SINGLE (Subject)

Masking description

Researchers and school personnel will not be blinded to group allocation, but parents and children will be blinded.

Intervention model description

Cluster randomized controlled trial with a hybrid type 3 evaluation design

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
5 Years to 70 Years
Healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

* All children and their parents at the included schools. All involved personnel at the included schools

Exclusion criteria

* No

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Change in fidelity (A) assessed by questionnaire to parents and school staffMeasured at 12 and 24 monthsAdherence to the four HSS components by indicators developed for this study. Information will be gathered through attendance logs and questionnaires to school staff and parents.
Change in fidelity (R) assessed by questionnaire to parentsMeasured at 12 and 24 monthsResponsiveness to the four HSS components by indicators developed for this study. Information will be gathered through questionnaires to parents.

Secondary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Change in feasibility of the HSS program measured by questionnaireMeasured at baseline, 12, 24, and 36 monthsFeasibility of implementing the intervention as perceived by school staff, measured with the questionnaire developed by Weiner et al.
Change in Organisational readiness of school principals assessed by questionnaireMeasured at baseline, 12, 24, and 36 monthsOrganisational readiness to change as perceived by school principals with the Leader Readiness to Implement Tool (LRIT)
Change in Organisational readiness by school staff assessed by questionnaireMeasured at baseline, 12, 24, and 36 monthsOrganisational readiness to change as perceived by school nurses and teachers with the Staff Readiness to Implement Tool (SRIT)
Fidelity to implementation strategies assessed by checklistMay each yearAssessment based on checklist developed for this study. Each strategy will be graded as 0=not implemented, 1=partially implemented, 2=fully implemented.
Change in acceptability of the HSS program assessed by questionnaireMeasured at baseline, 12, 24, and 36 monthsFeasibility of implementing the intervention as perceived by school staff, measured with the questionnaire developed by Weiner et al.
Change in child BMI z-score assessed through measurement of height (m) and weight (kg)Measured at baseline and after 24 monthsChild BMI will be calculated as in kg/m\^2. The BMI z-score will be calculated according to a Swedish reference standard (Karlberg).
Change in child diet assessed by parent questionnaireBaseline, 12 months, and 24 monthsDietary indicator foods (fruit, vegetables and energy-dense products) assessed by the diet portion of the Eating and Physical Activity Questionnaire (EPAQ)
Change in parental feeding practices assessed by parent questionnaireBaseline, 12 months, and 24 monthsAssessed with the Swedish short version of the Comprehensive Feeding Practices Questionnire (CFPQ)
Change in parents' risk of type 2 diabetes assessed by FINDRISC questionnaireMeasured at Baseline, 12 months, and 24 monthsThe FINDRISC self-evaluation test to calculate risk of developing type 2 diabetes on a scale from 0-26 points
Change in child weight status assessed through measurement of height (m) and weight (kg)Measured at baseline and after 24 monthsChild BMI will be calculated as in kg/m\^2. Weight status will be assessed using age-appropriate BMI cut-off values for thinness, overweight and obesity according to the International Obesity Task Force.
Change in appropriateness of the HSS program measured by questionnaireMeasured at baseline, 12, 24, and 36 monthsAppropriateness of implementing the intervention as perceived by school staff, measured with the questionnaire developed by Weiner et al.

Countries

Sweden

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Sep 10, 2026