Process tracking results from the Treatwell 5-a-Day Worksite Study

Abstract

Purpose: To report findings from Treatwell 5-a-Day process tracking.

Design: Worksites were randomly assigned to a minimal intervention control, worksite-only condition, or worksite-plus-family condition.

Setting: Twenty-two small community health centers in Massachusetts.

Subjects: Employees of the community health centers.

Intervention: Both intervention conditions included the formation of employee advisory boards; activities such as nutrition discussions and taste tests targeting individual behavior change; and point-of-purchase labeling as an environmental strategy. Worksite-plus-family sites incorporated activities such as family contests, campaigns, and picnics.

Measures: Documentation of the number and type of activities for extent of implementation; number of participants in activities for reach; program awareness and participation from the follow-up employee survey (n = 1306, representing 76% [range, 56%-100%] of the sample); change in fruit and vegetable consumption from a comparison between the follow-up and baseline surveys (n = 1359, representing 87% [range, 75%-100%] of the sample).

Results: A higher number of activities per employee was significantly correlated with greater program awareness (.68; p = .006) and greater change in fruit and vegetable consumption (.55; p = .04). Greater participation in activities was significantly correlated with greater awareness (.67; p = .007), higher participation (.61; p = .02), and increase in fruit and vegetable consumption. (.55; p = .04).

Conclusions: These results provide quantitative indicators of a dose-response relationship between the number of intervention activities per employee and higher percentage of employee participation and observed increases in fruit and vegetable consumption.