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Online Toolkit Supports Healthy Families
Media information
For immediate release
Date: 13 February 2009
Online Toolkit Supports Healthy Families
A programme that empowers families to make positive changes in their homes is now online for communities to access and adapt to meet their needs.
The Vibrant Living online toolkit, launched this morning, supports community groups to deliver a series of workshops that assist low-income families with parenting, healthy cooking, physical activity and budgeting.
The programme is a collaborative initiative between Waikato District Health Board's Population Health Service, Ministry of Social Development, Work and Income, Sport Waikato and Hamilton City Council.
Previously it was only available for Hamilton communities.
Regional health promoter Joan Woodham said the programme incorporates a holistic approach for helping families.
"It's about giving families the information and support they need to make a difference in their own home.
"This includes tips on low-cost healthy food, keeping active, building self esteem in their children and effective ways to communicate with their family and other essential life skills," she said.
Ministry of Social Development social development manager Deanne McManus-Emery said putting the toolkit online allows the programme to evolve and be accessible across the wider Waikato region.
"The Ministry of Social Development is committed to working with others to achieve better outcomes for our community.
"The new Vibrant Living online toolkit will allow communities and community organisations to freely access the information, take ownership of it and utilise it in a way that meets the individual needs of their communities," she said.
Waikato DHB's Healthy Eating Healthy Action (HEHA) website is hosting the Vibrant Living toolkit.
"The Vibrant Living toolkit fits perfectly with HEHA." said HEHA project director Janet Hanvey.
"Working in collaboration with other sectors to get health messages out to communities and foster healthier environments is a big part of the HEHA strategy," she said.
When first
introduced, the Vibrant Living programme was delivered
jointly by Waikato DHB, Work and Income, Sport Waikato and
Hamilton City Council and provided a nine week course
focussing on helping low-income families to:
* develop
their ability to cook nutritional meals while on a
budget
* enhance their awareness of the importance of
increasing their physical activity
* support families to
grow their own vegetable garden and,
* support families
to develop and implement positive parenting and relationship
strategies.
With the online toolkit, community groups will be able to select what parts they consider to be most important for them.
"Although the programme is most effective when it is presented in full, organisations will be able to select separate components if that suits their needs," Mrs Woodham said.
She also added that support would continue to be available for community groups to plan and deliver their own Vibrant Living programmes.
View, download and print the Vibrant Living online toolkit at: www.waikatodhb.govt.nz/HEHA.
END
Waikato District Health Board
Healthy People. Excellent Care
Waikato District Health Board (DHB) employs over 6500 people and plans, funds and provides hospital and health services to more than 391,770 people in a region covering eight per cent of New Zealand.
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