GMAP Focus Groups

The George Washington University Cancer Institute (GWCI) will work with the Subawardee to conduct four focus groups and one survey at a church site participating in the Region 2 BMORe pilot. The four focus groups will include one preintervention for BMORe participants, one pre]intervention for participant partners, one post]intervention for BMORE participants, and one post]intervention for participant partners. Project Purpose: The overall purpose of this project is to gain an improved understanding of health beliefs revolving around obesity among the 10 BMORe participants, and their 10 supporters. It is not the intention of this study to assess the correctness of participantsf responses (from the biomedical perspective); rather, the intent is to clearly present their knowledge and beliefs about obesity and weight loss. An additional goal is for these data to aid in the revision (if necessary) of the BMORe intervention prior to future implementation. Project Design: We will employ the Health Belief Model to frame the focus group questions at both the pre] and the post]test. The Health Belief Model offers a useful framework by describing four factors that influence health related decision]making: health motivation onefs susceptibility to obesity (perceived vulnerability to obesity and to the health problems related to obesity) perceived severity of obesity (seriousness of health problems related to obesity) perceived costs and benefits of losing weight A survey of church members that did and did not participate in the program is planned to help us better understand the impact of the intervention compared to a non]intervention group. The survey is not yet finalized, but it will be a brief, written survey and the goal is to get as many church members to complete it as possible. Subawardee Scope of Work: The Subawardee will: Obtain a letter of commitment from the church to provide to the GW Institutional Review Board Identify a point of contact at the church who is a church leader and will be trained to facilitate the focus groups Coordinate the food order for all focus groups Ensure a room is reserved at the church site for each focus group Recruit participants for the focus groups and survey Distribute incentives to participants Coordinate a lunch to incentivize survey completion