# Packaging and Disseminating the JOIN for ME Program in Low-Income Settings

> **NIH ALLCDC U18** · MIRIAM HOSPITAL · 2020 · $737,854

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
 The prevalence of overweight/obesity among children and adolescents remains a public health priority.
A convergence of evidence supports the efficacy of comprehensive family-based lifestyle approaches for the
treatment of pediatric obesity, as reflected in the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) Grade B
recommendation for clinicians to refer identified youth to such programs. Despite this call to action, the vast
majority of children struggling with obesity do not have access to evidence-based care. The most pressing
need is in youth from low-income families, who are at greatest risk of obesity and least likely to have access to
care. Delivering interventions through community settings offers one strategy for increasing access. The JOIN
for ME program, developed as a collaboration between United HealthGroup and Y-USA, is a pediatric weight
management intervention that can be delivered in community settings, with potential for national dissemination.
Consistent with empirically supported family-based interventions, the JOIN for Me program includes strong
parental involvement, use of effective behavioral strategies such as self-monitoring, and intervention targets
that focus on reducing consumption of energy dense, nutrient poor foods and beverages, decreasing
sedentary behavior, and increasing physical activity. Findings from an open trial (N=115) and subsequent
randomized controlled trial (N=75) demonstrate significant and meaningful reductions in weight status in
children 6-12 years of age; 4.3% and 5.5% decrease in percent overweight.
 We propose to package the JOIN for ME program to increase acceptability and feasibility for delivery in
low-income communities and test implementation in two novel settings: the housing authority and the patient-
centered medical home. The revised JOIN for ME package will be tested in a rigorous implementation study,
the goals of which are to: 1) examine key implementation metrics of program acceptability, feasibility, fidelity,
reach, and cost through comprehensive assessment of process measures, qualitative data, and cost analyses
and 2) evaluate patient outcomes, including changes in child and parent weight status and health-related
quality of life (HRQL). A total of 128 children (ages 6-12 years) with BMI > 85th% from low-income families and
a primary caregiver will be enrolled to participate in the JOIN for ME program offered through one of four
settings using a delayed treatment onset design. We will evaluate a series of implementation outcomes to
examine constructs of reach, acceptability and feasibility through process measures and multi-informant
qualitative interviews. It is hypothesized that children who receive the JOIN for ME program first will
demonstrate greater decrease in percent over median BMI and greater improvements in HRQL than those in
the delayed treatment onset who receive the intervention four months later. Implementation and effectiveness
outcomes will...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9899902
- **Project number:** 5U18DP006429-02
- **Recipient organization:** MIRIAM HOSPITAL
- **Principal Investigator:** ELISSA JELALIAN
- **Activity code:** U18 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** ALLCDC
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $737,854
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-04-01 → 2021-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9899902

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9899902, Packaging and Disseminating the JOIN for ME Program in Low-Income Settings (5U18DP006429-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9899902. Licensed CC0.

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