As an undergraduate researcher in the Lamm Lab, I had the opportunity to participate in UGA’s Center for Undergraduate Research Opportunities’ (CURO) 2023 Spring Symposium held in Athens, Georgia. The research I presented focused on determining the reach and uptake of the Healthier Together program in five rural counties of Georgia that were impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Healthier Together is a public health program funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in partnership with the UGA Colleges of Public Health, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, and Cooperative Extension that aims to increase access to healthy foods and physical activity opportunities in rural Georgia counties to reduce the occurrence of diet-related chronic disease.
The goal of my research was to identify if food and physical activity resources were being used, and if use changed during the pandemic. Examples of food and physical activity resources implemented in the communities included community gardens, partnerships with food pantries, and planning for more bike lanes and walking paths. My research helped evaluate the program, determine individual needs of each county, and find out which community members are using specific resources.
The study findings indicated that there was no significant change in use of resources over the course of the pandemic, indicating the resources were utilized with or without the pandemic. It is possible rural areas may not have been as affected by the pandemic as urban or suburban locations.
Authors: Saher Dossani, Alexa Lamm, Catherine Sanders, Kristin Gibson
