Queensland Smart Choices Over the Essay

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Given the fact that indigenous culture; is based off of their unique relationship with the land, means that the basic Smart Choices initiatives must take this approach into account. (Indigenous Australian 2009) To implement this kind of a program, means that you would have to reach out leaders in the indigenous community and schools, by discussing with the problem as well as what strategies they believe would help to address the challenges. At which point, these ideas will become a part of the program. This would help to build alliances with key groups in the community and schools, by having advocates who will support the program as well as encourage others to participate. Once this takes place, the challenges of individuals following them will begin to change.

Next, you must offer some kind of economic incentive for people to eat healthier. One way that this could be accomplished is to find local farmers and growers in the areas that could sell the community large amounts of healthy foods in bulk (at a discount). This could be passed on to everyone else, in the form of lower prices, making healthy food choices a viable alternative.

Finally, you would have to have the various allies in the community working together encouraging physical exercise. This would involve constant collaboration and communication about a number of different programs. At first, implementing these new initiatives will be time consuming, as everyone must concentrate on making the actual changes on a consistent basis. However, if everyone can remain committed to the different goals and objectives, then the odds increase that the community will be to see a reduction in the number overweight and obesity related cases. This is significant, because it shows how utilizing such a strategy can have a profound impact upon addressing, the underlying challenges facing many indigenous communities. As various government programs are to general and do not take into account specific factors that could be affecting the community.

In many ways, one could argue that this why the overall economic issues can impact the obesity rate. As many individuals will feel that the government does not take their situation into account, which will create a sense of indifference among members of the community. Once this takes place, it can work similar to a cancer that will eat away at any kind of advances, by shifting the problem around. In the case of the indigenous people, this why the underlying health disparities have shifted from malnutrition to obesity, as government programs are not customized to address specific factors that could be affecting the community. If you can address this issue, then you have the ability to change the actions of the individual, which will have an impact upon the overall success of the Smart Choices program.

When you put these different elements together, this highlights how you must be able to increase the involvement of various community leaders and address specific cultural factors. This is important, because it shows why so many nutrition programs have failed in the past, as they do not take this into account. If you can incorporate these elements into the general strategy, then you will have a tremendous impact upon changing the underlying levels of health in the community.

How you would evaluate your performance in relation to any policy initiatives you develop.

To evaluate any kind of performance in the policy, you would have to take into account the views of the individual and then corroborate them with actual results that are taking place. One way to do this would be, to conduct random surveys at various health clinics. Where, you are asking respondents for their views on the program and what they think could help to make it better. This is important, because understanding how the individual in the community views what is taking place, could have an impact upon the program. Where, it will identify specific factors that could be affecting the overall opinions about the program itself. If you can address these issues, then you have the opportunity of being able to ensure that the program can remain successful, as no one will have negative opinions about the initiatives. In many ways, one could argue that this is the key for successfully implementing Smart Choices in the community, with the opinions of the individual playing a major role, in determining if they will stick with the changes they are making. This is important, because in order for any program to be effective, requires understanding the positive or negative views of the individual, which will have an impact upon its success.
If you can address and understand, these different issues; then can be able to have profound impact on mitigating the obesity rates in the community.

At the same time, you would have to corroborate the changes based upon actual figures. In this case, the numbers will more than likely be backward looking (with various government statistics reflecting what has taken place in the past). As a result, some kind of indicator must be created to address this issue, so that we can be able to identify the underlying trends that are taking place early. One way that this can be accomplished is by: creating a survey that will sample select individuals in the community and then compare these results, with the general information provided about health levels throughout the commonwealth. To accomplish this objective, you could have individuals in the community voluntarily having their health information monitored over the course of time. Once you have compiled a number of different surveys, you can begin to determine, the actual affects of what is taking place in the community. To corroborate the results, you would take the general health information from the government and compare it with your findings. At the same time, you could look at the number of new obesity cases that are being reported, in association with the underlying cases of diabetes and heart disease, to determine the effects of program. This is important, because it will provide an effective way of measuring the success of Smart Choices in the area and it will tell you if it is addressing the various cultural issues.

When you put these different elements together, this highlights how any kind of program that is being implemented, must have a way of evaluating the trends and if the strategy is working. This is important, because once you understand what issues are affecting the individual and the underlying trends; you can begin to address them. At which point, individual compliance will increase, as they feel that any negative views that they may have about the program are discussed. In many ways, one could argue that this why so many programs have failed in the past, as they do not take into account specific cultural factors that could have an impact upon the individual. At which point, they will begin viewing Smart Choices in a negative light, reducing the effectiveness of the program. When you change this approach, this helps to increase the positive feelings, establishing new changes in the life of the individual. If you can address this issue, then you can be able to change the long-term trends in the community.

Clearly, the current strategy that is being used to address the obesity epidemic is failing. This is because the government is taking a one size fits all approach when it comes to diet and nutrition. In the case of the community we are going to be working with, this is problematic as it will not address specific factors that could be affecting the indigenous population. This is important, because the underlying levels of health in this population group are worse in comparison with rest of society. This is despite the fact that the government has been attempting to actively address this issue since the 1960's. Yet, the underlying disparities in health between society and this demographic are continuing to remain at extreme levels. To address the underlying challenges, a new approach must be taken that will incorporate culture into the Smart Choices program. Where, you would need to build alliances with members of the community, schools and parents. This is when you will seek out what specific factors could be causing the underlying problem and begin addressing them. Given the fact that Aborigines have a lower standard of living, means that this is a major issue that could be affecting compliance. Where, they will see this as another failed government program. If you can begin to address this issue, then you can increase the effectiveness of the Smart Choices program. One way that this can be accomplished, is by working with local farmers to sell healthy fruits and vegetables in the community. At the same time, the alliances that have been formed with community leaders can be used to change the way….....

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