Implementation and evaluation of a community-based health-promoting school intervention - Fit lifestyle at school and at home: the FLASH study
| ISRCTN | ISRCTN67201841 |
|---|---|
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN67201841 |
| ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT) | Nil known |
| Clinical Trials Information System (CTIS) | Nil known |
| Protocol serial number | 50-53105-98-033 |
| Sponsor | Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam |
| Funder | ZonMw |
- Submission date
- 06/05/2019
- Registration date
- 09/05/2019
- Last edited
- 23/08/2022
- Recruitment status
- No longer recruiting
- Overall study status
- Completed
- Condition category
- Other
Plain English summary of protocol
Background and study aims
A community-based approach can be a promising strategy for implementing school-based health promotion aimed at stimulating healthy physical activity and dietary behavior. Such an approach builds on the community capacity of multiple stakeholders, empowering them to design and implement tailored activities, supported by the whole school community. The FLASH intervention includes four strategies for building community capacity of students, school personnel and parents:
1) identifying leaders in each stakeholder group
2) stimulating a school culture of participation
3) having stakeholders design and implement tailored activities
4) creating a network of local partners for structural embedding.
The objective of the study is to monitor capacity-building processes of the FLASH intervention and to explore if these processes contribute to changes in community capacity. In addition, we will explore if the FLASH intervention is related to changes in PA, dietary behaviors and BMI of students.
Who can participate?
Students at schools offering prevocational education (lowest education level in the Netherlands) can take part in this study.
What does the study involve?
1) Semi-structured interviews are carried out with different stakeholders (school personnel and parents).
2) Based on photo-elicitation methodology, students are enabled to show what engages, supports and challenges them with regard to choices they make in the healthy school community regarding dietary and physical activity behavior.
3) Students are asked to fill in a questionnaire and their length, weight and waist circumference are measured.
What are the possible benefits and risks of participating?
Possible benefits include a healthier school community, with a healthier school environment. In addition, benefits could also be positive changes in physical activity and dietary behaviors for students. There are no risks of participating in the study.
Where is the study run from?
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam department of Health Sciences, the Netherlands
When is the study starting and how long is it expected to run for?
September 2016 to February 2019
Who is funding the study?
The Netherlands Organisation for Health Research and Development (ZonMw)
Who is the main contact?
Ms Bonnie van Dongen,
b.m.van.dongen@vu.nl
Contact information
Scientific
De Boelelaan 1085
Amsterdam
1081 HV
Netherlands
| Phone | +31205983718 |
|---|---|
| b.m.van.dongen@vu.nl |
Study information
| Primary study design | Interventional |
|---|---|
| Study design | Evaluation study quasi-experimental design |
| Secondary study design | Non randomised study |
| Study type | Participant information sheet |
| Scientific title | Creating healthy school communities by sound teamwork |
| Study acronym | FLASH |
| Study objectives | It is hypothesized that on the short term, the FLASH intervention will lead to changes in student attitudes towards physical activity (PA) and dietary behavior. On the intermediate term, this will lead to changes in PA and dietary behaviors and on the long-term to changes in BMI and waist-circumference. |
| Ethics approval(s) | Approved 20/09/2016, Medical Ethics Committee of the VU Medical Centre (Postbus 7057, 1007 MB Amsterdam, The Netherlands; +31 20 444 4444; metc@vumc.nl), ref: 2016.352 |
| Health condition(s) or problem(s) studied | Healthy lifestyles |
| Intervention | Mapping the situation - needs-assessment: The FLASH intervention starts with a needs-assessment among a) students and b) key-stakeholders. For students, the needs-assessment is based on photo-elicitation methodology where students are enabled to show what engages, supports and challenges them with regard to choices they make in the healthy school community regarding dietary and PA behavior. Key stakeholders among school personnel and parents are interviewed to identify conditions and strengths in the school community and opportunities for capacity-building within their specific context. Facilitating community-capacity building: Several inputs are provided to each school community to facilitate four capacity-building strategies. - Identifying and appointing leaders: a healthy school coordinator is appointed and is allocated time to create a network of motivated initiators. These coordinators are coached and guided by experts from local organizations - Creating a school culture of participation: the healthy school coordinator is seen as a starting point. Coaching from experts is focused on small steps and experiences of success. The schools are provide with methods suitable for participation based on evidence. - Designing and implementing activities: conducting and analyzing the needs-assessment to serve as input. The coordinator will organize a design-thinking session with representatives of all stakeholders to create ideas and solutions. An implementation budget is provided as a start-up recourse - Creating a network of local support: coaching and guidance are provided by experts from local organizations in different areas (education and public health). - Coaching from these experts is aimed towards building potential collaboration using their local network based on the needs of the community. The intervention follows an action-oriented approach where we monitor processes of community-capacity building, the implementation of activities and the influence of contextual factors on these processes in real-life settings. Observed results are used to achieve continuous improvement of processes within capacity-building strategies. |
| Intervention type | Behavioural |
| Primary outcome measure(s) |
1. Changes in community-capacity evaluated with the community readiness to change interview method, which includes an anchoring scoring system that can create a score for each community on their level of community-capacity. Interviews take place at the end of school year 2017/18 (June 2018) and at one-year follow-up, June 2019. |
| Key secondary outcome measure(s) |
1. PA and dietary behaviors including attitude toward PA and dietary behavior, are measured with a self-reported questionnaire. |
| Completion date | 31/01/2020 |
Eligibility
| Participant type(s) | Healthy volunteer |
|---|---|
| Age group | Child |
| Sex | All |
| Target sample size at registration | 400 |
| Key inclusion criteria | All schools: 1. School offers prevocational education (lowest education level in the Netherlands) 2. School is committed to participate in evaluation research for four years Inclusion criteria for intervention schools: 1. Willing to implement the FLASH intervention, e.g. create a healthy school community regarding health PA and dietary behavior 2. Willing to facilitate new health-promotion activities 3. Willing to appoint a staff member to coordinate the intervention Inclusion criteria for control schools: 1. Control schools match on the following characteristics to an intervention school: size (total number of prevocational students registered), physical environment (rural vs. urban environment), types of education offered (school offers exclusively prevocational education vs. schools offer prevocational education and higher types of secondary education) Individual level: 1. All students enrolled in prevocational education 2. Informed consent from student and parent |
| Key exclusion criteria | For control schools: 1. Schools that fall under the direction of the educational organization that co-developed the FLASH intervention. This organization facilitates secondary and vocational education in the North-eastern region of the Netherlands. Therefore, schools in this region are excluded for control schools to prevent contamination of results due to connection between these schools and the educational organization. |
| Date of first enrolment | 01/09/2016 |
| Date of final enrolment | 01/02/2019 |
Locations
Countries of recruitment
- Netherlands
Study participating centre
Amsterdam
1081 HV
Netherlands
Results and Publications
| Individual participant data (IPD) Intention to share | No |
|---|---|
| IPD sharing plan summary | Data sharing statement to be made available at a later date |
| IPD sharing plan | The current data sharing plans for this study are unknown and will be available at a later date |
Study outputs
| Output type | Details | Date created | Date added | Peer reviewed? | Patient-facing? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Results article | 03/08/2022 | 23/08/2022 | Yes | No | |
| Protocol article | protocol | 20/06/2019 | 09/12/2020 | Yes | No |
| Participant information sheet | Participant information sheet | 11/11/2025 | 11/11/2025 | No | Yes |
| Study website | Study website | 11/11/2025 | 11/11/2025 | No | Yes |
Editorial Notes
23/08/2022: Publication reference added.
09/12/2020: Publication reference added.
08/05/2019: Trial’s existence confirmed by Medical Ethics Committee of the VU Medical Centre.
