Determining Early Childhood Professionals’ Perspectives on Provider-Caregiver Nutrition Communication Strategies

Abstract

Abstract Objectives Explore early childcare providers’ perceptions on the barriers and facilitators to effective provider-caregiver communication practices to address child nutrition. Methods A mixed-methods design was utilized to interview childcare professionals working with children 0–3 years of age in Florida. Semi-structured interviews containing questions based on key Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) constructs were conducted along with a short demographic questionnaire. Interviews were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim. Transcripts were coded by two researchers using a thematic analysis approach and major themes were summarized. Results Participants (n = 10) were female, early childcare providers with an average of seven years of experience and serving families with infants and toddlers ages 0 to 3 years old. While childcare professionals emphasized having the intention to convey nutrition-related information to the caregivers, major themes revealed barriers including time, parental provision of unhealthy foods, parent receptiveness and overall nutrition knowledge, and culture and language. Overall, participants described the nutrition communication practices at their center to be effective and suggested daily communication via mobile app as one of their best practices. Although, interactions with caregivers were often brief and revolved around sensitive and timely dietary information. All participants mentioned being open to receiving both nutrition education and communication strategies training to improve their current practices with caregivers. Conclusions While childcare professionals have the intention to convey nutrition-related information to the caregivers, they are often constrained by a variety of barriers. Further research will also be conducted to examine caregivers’ perceptions on this topic. Funding Sources None.