Nutrition Faculty Publications

Development and Validation of the Policies, Opportunities, Initiatives and Notable Topics (POINTS) Audit for Campuses and Worksites

Tanya M. Horacek
Mariel Simon
Elif Dede Yildirim
Adrienne A. White
Karla P. Shelnutt
Kristin Riggsbee
Melissa D. Olfert
Jesse Stabile Morrell
Anne E. Mathews
Wenjun Zhou
Tandalayo Kidd
Kendra Kattelmann
Geoffrey Greene, University of Rhode IslandFollow
Lisa Franzen-Castle
Sarah Colby
Carol Byrd-Bredbenner
Onikia Brown

Document Type

Article

Date of Original Version

2019

Department

Nutrition and Food Sciences

Abstract

Background: Workplace or campus wellness/obesity-prevention policies and initiatives can improve health. Research tools to assess worksite or campus policies/initiatives are scarce. Thus, the aim of this research is to develop and validate the policies, opportunities, initiatives, and notable topics (POINTS) audit. Methods: POINTS was developed and refined via expert review, pilot-testing, and field testing. Trained researchers completed a web-based review from a student-focus or employee-focus regarding 34 health-promoting topics for colleges. Each topic was evaluated on a 0–2 scale: 0 = no policy/initiative, 1 = initiatives, 2 = written policy. When a written policy was detected, additional policy support questions (administered, monitored, reviewed) were completed. Results: Cronbach’s Alpha for the student-focused POINTS audit was α = 0.787 (34 items, possible points = 65), and for the employee-focused POINTS audit was α = 0.807 (26 items, possible points = 50). A total of 115 student-focused and 33 employee-focused audits were completed. Although there was little evidence of policy presence beyond stimulant standards (smoking and alcohol), there were extensive examples of health initiatives. The student-focused POINTS audit was validated using the Healthier Campus Initiative’s survey. Conclusions: POINTS is a web-based audit tool that is valid and useful for pre-assessment, advocacy, benchmarking, and tracking policies for health and well-being for students (campus) and employees (worksite).

Citation/Publisher Attribution

Horacek, T., Simon, M., Dede Yildirim, E., White, A., Shelnutt, K., Riggsbee, K., … Brown, O. (2019). Development and Validation of the Policies, Opportunities, Initiatives and Notable Topics (POINTS) Audit for Campuses and Worksites. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16(5), 778. doi:10.3390/ijerph16050778

Available at: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16050778