Collaborate for Healthy Weight initiative aims to reverse the obesity epidemic

Michael Rosenthal, M.D., chair of the Department of Family & Community Medicine at Christiana Care Health System, helped unveil the “Collaborate for Healthy Weight” initiative Friday at Westside Family Healthcare in Dover.

Rosenthal was joined by a number of key leaders in Delaware, including U.S. Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), Delaware Health and Social Services Secretary Rita Landgraf, Division of Public Health Director Dr. Karyl Rattay, and U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services Regional Director Joanne Grossi.

The initiative, which was funded through the Affordable Care Act, is a national effort to reverse the obesity epidemic through innovative local partnerships between primary care doctors and nurses, public health professionals, and leaders of community-based organizations. Delaware’s partnership is one of 50 teams nationwide that will be working together to reverse the obesity epidemic in communities. In Delaware, teams will be formed to work with obesity prevention leaders from across the United States who will provide technical assistance for developing creative methods of education, quality improvement, and supportive care.

“The Delaware Healthy Weight Collaborative provides a unique opportunity to integrate primary care practice, public health, and community-based approaches to address the increasing problem of weight gain and obesity in Delaware,” Rosenthal said. “It will allow us to develop innovative plans to enable children and their families achieve and maintain a healthy weight.