Conway Medical Center takes seriously its mission to improve the overall health of the community. One way it is doing this for the residents of Horry County, South Carolina is through its partnership with the President's Challenge. With 57% of its residents identified as overweight or obese, this state is not immune to the epidemic plaguing the nation. Therefore, it became a focus of Conway Medical Center to motivate residents to practice healthier lifestyles, beginning with the children. With a grant from the hospital's foundation, Conway Medical Wellness and Fitness Center was able to initiate a collaborative endeavor with the President's Challenge and their local school district. The grant funded the printing of 30,000 newsletters (which were distributed through the schools); provided award packages for the approximately 1000 students who completed the President's Challenge; and allowed for a closing celebration to honor all participants. Conway is working to make this an annual event in an effort to underscore the importance of helping people-kids and adults, lead healthy and active lives.

For more information contact:
Kim Mitchell
Director
Conway Medical Center
Wellness & Fitness Center
2369 Cypress Circle
Conway, SC 29526
843.347.1515
kmitchell@conwaymedicalcenter.com



The American College of Endocrinology’s Power of Prevention program was created in 2004 to raise awareness and educate the public on endocrine diseases in order to prevent these diseases and disorders. The Power of Prevention is comprised of three major components: school visits, educational website, and prevention publications.

The Power of Prevention School Health Initiative begins with a member of the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists conducting a presentation to students in their local community. The presentation features the importance of physical activity and making sound nutritional choices. The objective is to combat the rapid increase in diagnosis of children with type 2 diabetes caused by obesity through preventive education. During these visits to local schools, AACE members and teachers encourage students to take the President’s Challenge.

This year the Power of Prevention will cover the cost for the first 50,000 Power of Prevention participants who complete the challenge to receive their Physical Active Lifestyle Award (PALA) certificate and emblem.

The website, www.powerofprevention.com, is the only website you need to learn about a variety of endocrine disorders. Featured disorders include: adrenal gland, cholesterol, diabetes, men’s endocrine health, women’s endocrine health, healthy weight, nutrition, parathyroid gland, pituitary gland, osteoporosis, thyroid gland, and thyroid cancer.

The Power of Prevention Guide to Physical Activity is the “no excuses” guide to physical activity no matter one’s situation or condition. It can be ordered through the Power of Prevention website at www.powerofprevention.com.



The SilverSneakers Fitness Program is the nation's leading exercise program designed exclusively for older adults. The award-winning program appeals to members at all fitness levels because of its high-touch, customized approach to increasing physical activity. With the average life expectancy in the United States now at 77 years, quality of life in one's alter years is increasingly important. Adults over age 65 who adopt a physically active lifestyle can improve their health - and their quality of life - substantially. SilverSneakers is offered at more than 1500 fitness centers and class site in 46 states. Please visithttp://www.silversneakers.com/ for more information on this unique program.



Rediscovering Youth Sportsmanship: Parenting An Athlete was designed by behavioral health specialists, in conjunction with sports medicine and health care professionals from the Saint Barnabas Health Care System- New Jersey's largest integrated healthcare system. Rediscovering Youth Sportsmanship has been presented to more than 4000 parents, coaches, and sports administrators since its inception in March 2000. Originally designed to address the growing problem of poor parental behavior at children's sporting events, the program now incorporates the President's Challenge to assist parents in gaining a greater understanding of their child's physical activity needs and practice parenting skills while working together toward the Presidential Active Lifestyle Award (PALA). Once parents and children complete the 6-week activity program, they may submit their activity logs to the Rediscovering Youth Sportsmanship program to receive their PALA award, compliments of the St. Barnabas Health Care System. The staff of Saint Barnabas Health Care System is available to present the Parenting An Athlete program to parents, coaches, sports officials and administrators. For more information, visit http://www.discoversportsmanship.com



The American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) is the national association of family doctors. It is one of the largest national medical organizations, with more than 93,700 members in 50 states, D.C., Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and Guam. The family physician is uniquely positioned throughout the United States in urban, suburban and rural areas. Family physicians provide 210 million office visits each year * 76 million more than any other specialty and provide the majority of care for America's underserved rural and urban populations. Finally, family physicians care for the entire family and can implement cross-generational, multicultural and culturally diverse programs that appropriately fit in each community and practice.

The AAFP developed the Americans In Motion (AIM) initiative to improve the health of all Americans by implementing a multifaceted fitness program addressing physical activity, nutrition, and emotional well-being in the individual, family and community. The first phase of this initiative focused on reaching physicians (first level of awareness); the second, reaching patients and practice staff, and the third, reaching the public. It is through this effort that the AAFP and the President's Council on Physical Fitness formalized a relationship. The AAFP President Michael O. Fleming, M.D., issued a personal and presidential challenge to all AAFP members to take steps to improve their own health and live a more active and healthy lifestyle. Members were encouraged to wear a pedometer, aim to walk 10,000 steps each day, monitor their Body Mass Index (BMI), and enroll in the Active Lifestyle Program. T

The AAFP is strongly committed to advocacy for the American people. AIM supports advocacy in many important areas especially those congruent issues shared by our partners and others in the family of family medicine. Family physicians may play a role in advocacy issues in their community related to school breakfast and lunch programs, daily Physical Education requirements, transportation and access to fitness infrastructure, legislative advocacy for wellness facilities (bike paths and walking trails), and senior health issues.



Children's National Medical Center sponsored a pilot program at Barnard Elementary in Washington, DC as part of the Children's Healthy Schools/President's Challenge campaign. All of the students at Barnard were challenged to earn the Presidential Active Lifestyle Award (PALA). CNMC worked with the President's Challenge to develop a passport containing general health promotion and physical activity information and a log in which participants tracked their physical activities. Participants who met the program's requirements (5 days of 60 minutes of activity for 6-weeks) were given a PALA patch and certificate provided by CNMC. For more information on the Children's National Medical Center, visit www.cnmc.org.