Transcript Document

Sarah Stempski, MPHc
Elizabeth Bennett, MPH, CHES
CPPW Everyone Swims!
Focus Group Summary
December 13, 2010
Everyone Swims! Goal
Increase widespread access to pools and water
recreation throughout King County among low income
and culturally/ethnically diverse populations
Today’s Goal:
Summarize what we have learned about family
perceptions related to Everyone Swims objectives
Identify barriers and opportunities most critical to
meeting the ‘Everyone Swims’ goal
Discuss and prioritize policy and system changes
In the Media
A recent news headline:
‘Pool boots kids who “might change the complexion”:
Campers sent packing after first visit to swim club’
July 29, 2010; NBC Philadelphia
Everyone Swims!’ Focus Group Methods
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Children’s IRB approval for project exempt status
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Work with partners to recruit families representing
populations of focus in grant
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Incentives: Focus group participants were given a grocery gift
card, child care to attend the meeting, and light snacks
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Meetings conducted by culturally appropriate moderator
throughout November in clinics and community centers
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Groups are convenience sample and not fully representative
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Notes transcribed during focus group discussions
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Develop themes for review with partners to identify key
opportunities and barriers
Everyone Swims! Focus Groups
Participant Demographics
Everyone Swims! Partner Hosts
5 African-American parents
1 African-American grandparent
1 Caucasian/white parent
Medgar Evers Pool and Odessa Brown
Children’s Clinic
7 Hispanic parents (MexicanAmerican)
Seattle Children’s Hospital
16 Somali parents
Columbia Public Health Center
14 Vietnamese parents
Columbia Public Health Center
1 Hispanic parent
2 African-American parents
3 Caucasian/white parents
1 Asian parent
George Pocock Rowing Foundation
Focus Group
Assessment
Predisposing Factors Assessed
•Knowledge of scholarships
•Parent or caregiver experience with swimming (including
fear of pools and beaches)
•Access to current information about the registration
process and swimming pools
•Knowledge of what to expect at swimming pools
•Beliefs about swimming as a life skill
•Availability of role models
•Perceptions of water cleanliness and sanitation
Enabling Factors Assessed
•Language, time and financial constraints
•Ease and transparency of swimming lesson scholarship
process
•Ease of registration process
•Ease of access to programming based on time of day
•Availability of programming for special groups (ie.
gender swims for Somali community, organized swims
for overweight or obese children)
•Access to information about swimming from a trusted
source
•Access to and comfort with swimwear
Reinforcing Factors Assessed
•Experience with a swimming program, including
programs for special groups
•Experience with swimming teachers and pool staff
(demeanor, cultural sensitivity and languages spoken)
•Availability of reminder phone calls for swimming
lessons
•Experience of learning skills and progressing in
swimming ability
•Ease of reenrollment
•Perception of benefits (learning new skill and
exercise) as compared to costs (time, money, effort to
go swimming)
Themes
Scholarships for swim programming
Focus Group Themes
• Applying requires
multiple tries and is
embarrassing
• Families what to know
if they qualify before
they apply
• Families don’t know
about scholarship
opportunities
Mailing scholarships helps to
not feel like a stereotypical
poor, single mom. The mail
in would help a lot because
that trickles down. You don’t
want someone to say,
“you’re a scholarship kid”.
Doing other sports-- need to
see other kids that are like
them—they see on their
basketball team there are
other kids like them.
-Odessa Brown Community
Clinic Parent
Screening for Swim Ability
Themes
• Doctors are viewed as
a trusted source of
information about the
importance swimming
• Some families do not
think of swimming as
an activity or skill
• Families are interested
in a resource with
information
“Present it as a safety
issue and then give some
resources.
Docs should say:
‘Everyone should know
how to swim.’
‘What kind of sports do you
do?’
‘Swimming is something to
look into’. “
-George Pocock Rowing
Foundation Parent
Referrals to Pools and Water Rec Programs
Focus Group Themes
• Need to lessen
confusion of finding a
pool
• Special programs or
partnerships are
appreciated by those
involved in programs
• Clinic staff are trusted,
need to give options
• Families may need help
with forms and what to
do, esp. the first time
The doctor explained it to me—I
can do swimming or walking.
But, it would be really nice to
have person who speaks their
language at the pool teaching
the swimming lessons. My main
concern is privacy and do not
have a ride.” -Somali speaking
parent focus group at Columbia
Health Center
Programming for special populations
Themes
• Parent-child swim lessons
wanted, should allow
multiple children with
parent
• Adult water phobias
• Children will be less
embarrassed if there are
other kids like them
• Gender only swims viewed
as pools making effort to
include all cultures
• Birthday parties/events
“It’s probably the last thing we ever
think of doing because the kids
don’t know how to swim and it’s
much easier to take them to a
soccer game.” – Seattle Children’s
Spanish Speaking Parent Group
“My daughter wanted a swimming
party. They wanted $250—and
that was only for an hour of
swimming. There are too many
restrictions and only an hour of
swimming, small room. We opted
to do something else—I could do a
lot for $250!” -Odessa Brown
Community Clinic Parent
Additional Barriers for these groups
Themes
• Acceptable swimwear
is important to feel
included
• Concern about water
being clean
• Finding out about
swimming in places
common to culture
• Discrimination at pools
is a concern
“Barriers to our kids learning to
swim: age [under 5yrs-drinking
pool water]; costs; time; ratio
between students and
instructors arte too high (9
students to 1 instructor –
parents worry about safety
issue and not enough time for
children to learn).”
-Vietnamese speaking group
at Columbia Health Center
Coming full circle
“I would like to receive follow-up information regarding work
relating to this focus group/outcomes/how this information is
used.”
-Vietnamese speaking group at Columbia Health Center
Next steps
Discussion and Prioritization of Ideas
I.
Discussion of ideas for policy and systems change
–clarification and addition of what’s missing
II.
Group exercise to rate each idea: Nominal Group
Process
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Each person to choose top 2 ideas in each area
Scholarships
Referrals
Screenings
Special programming
Scholarship Policy and Systems Change Ideas
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If a child is on Medicaid, automatically qualify
Can apply for scholarship online
Scholarship forms available to print from pool website
Scholarship guidelines posted online and in print
Family does not have to pay upfront for swim lessons and then be reimbursed
later
Scholarship offered for family swim
Scholarship offered for open swim
Scholarships offered for swim lessons
Scholarship information is available in other languages
Swimming program information is available in other languages
Swimming program information is provided to Everyone Swims community
clinics in pool catchment area
Scholarship applications are reviews and families are notified within 48 hours
Scholarship extended to community center/other physical activities
Scholarship extended to include swimming parties (perhaps as incentive)
Hold open a few evening/weekend swim lesson slots for Everyone Swims
referrals until the week before
‘Sponsor a child’ scholarship
Clinic to Pool Referral Ideas
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Clinic provides hands on assistance to help
family fill out scholarship form
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Clinic has scholarship forms available
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Clinic has water recreation/swimming information
in waiting room
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Clinics have video options to play in waiting
rooms
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Clinic actively gives out swimming/water
recreation information
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Clinic provides list of referred families to pool
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Clinic fills out a “referral form” and faxes it to
pool
Swim Ability Screening Ideas
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Clinic has standard tool system in place to assess
swim ability at 5-6 year old well child check
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Clinic has standard tool system to assist patient
(any age) interest and barriers to swimming/water
recreation
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Providers screen for swim ability for other ages
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Clinic makes referral to water recreation/swimming
when appropriate
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Providers recommend swimming as a physical
activity
Programming Policy and System Change Ideas
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Clinic partners with pool/water recreation facility
on a special program
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Clinic partners with pool/water recreation facility
on a 1-2x year Pool Party
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Pool partners to offer gender only swim for girls
and women
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Pool partners to offer gender only swim for boys
and men
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Pool offers child-parent beginning swim program
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Pool/clinic partner to offer special program for
obese/overweight children/teens/adults
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Clinic partners with pool/water partners facilitate
equipment for swimming (suits, etc)
CPPW Everyone Swims!
Thank you for your time,
dedication, and insight!
December 12, 2010