Executive Summary on WIC Program

Executive Summary on WIC Program

Executive summary

Public health is fundamental to the level of development and improving the overall focus on individual wellbeing. The decisions that are undertaken regarding public health concerns must focus on a specific group of individuals that help in identifying key aspects that promote change in improving the wellbeing of the most vulnerable members in society. Pregnant women, infants, and children are highly vulnerable within the society hence require integration of efficient public health measures to protect and improve their wellbeing. The development of the federal Women, Infant, and Children (WIC) program has sought to address some of the common challenges facing these groups.

The WIC program presents federal grants to states in improving the nutritional levels of these groups as well as healthcare referrals and nutritional educations. Kreider et al. (2018) identified that the WIC program is an initial intervention helping more than nine million recipients annually, with the majority being pregnant women (p. 6). The article further identifies that in 2016, approximately 39.6% of women who delivered in the United States received prenatal benefits from WIC. The provision of these measures to these vulnerable population controls malnutrition among children while also increasing fetal development and control the incidence of low birth weight and reduced gestation period (p.7).

The implementation of the WIC program within the state has not been effectively embraced despite significant influence on improved nutritional status among children, infants, and pregnant women. According to Chaparro et al. (2019), WIC recipients are less likely to have low birth weight among neonates as well as malnutrition among children who are highly targeted by this program. Malnutrition has been a primary cause of immunodeficiency globally. Malnutrition is one of the five major infectious diseases that contribute to approximately half of all deaths in children. Malnutrition deficiencies have also been associated with adverse outcomes, including poor growth, high susceptibility to infection, as well as impaired intelligence (p. 18).

The susceptibility of pregnant mothers, infants, and children means that there is a need to employ closer systems that can help in maintaining a more substantial system that helps improve their needs while also improving the quality of public health. Foster et al. (2010) illustrate that the WIC program has been highly prominent throughout the United States based on its essential role in promoting improved healthcare outcomes among the target recipients. The study further highlights that the provision of care to the most in need groups has been difficult, making it challenging to determine the association between the WIC use and the health of the beneficiaries (p.1084).

Changing the current status in the implementation of the WIC program requires identification of the potential beneficiaries to the program and ensure that they are enrolled to promote efficacy in rolling out the program to the target groups in a more organized manner. Phelan et al. (2017) found that the WIC program has been a highly cost-effective project that advances individual nutrition as well as the health of low-income families (p. 2384). Healthy infants and highly nutritious diets, as well as better healthcare, have been associated with higher cognitive development among children. The provision of funding to the program should be in accordance with the demand of the program benefits across different states. The eligibility criteria should be assessed in helping maintain a broader commitment to improved healthcare among vulnerable groups (p. 2387).

Based on the findings from the search analysis, it was evident that WIC programs have been vital in improving the health of expectant mothers, infants, and children. However, there is a gap considering that not all those in need are getting deserved help. State players need to come up with efficient strategies that can help in identifying those in need.  Peer-reviewed articles on the WIC program were evaluated, which helped understand the current situation and implementation of the program across different states in the country.  The databases that were utilized included Cochrane Library, Medline, Ebsco-host, and Google scholar.  These databases contain only scientific articles, which include researches that have been conducted and reviewed, which shows that the articles and information considered are reliable, valid, and credible.

Developing a more strategic structure in identifying families in need of the WIC benefits outline better processes that help improve the efficiency of the program. Child malnutrition is associated with different physical and cognitive factors including delayed physical growth, lower intellectual level, deficient social skills as well as vulnerability in disease development.  Malnutrition has also been linked to increased risk of chronic illness among children. The development of the WIC program has been well outlined, although different states have different approaches that they use to identify beneficiaries of the project. The program was initially developed to help control the impact of poverty on a prenatal, infant, and early childhood through the provision of a wide array of services such as healthcare referral, nutritional education, and providing supplemental foods. Although different states have different approaches to identify the needy population, the eligibility of these methods is mainly defined by the federal guidelines.

References

Chaparro, M. P., Anderson, C. E., Crespi, C. M., Wang, M. C., & Whaley, S. E. (2020). The new child food package is associated with reduced obesity risk among formula fed infants participating in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) in Los Angeles County, California, 2003–2016. International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, 17(1), 18.

Colman, S., Nichols-Barrer, I. P., Redline, J. E., Devaney, B. L., Ansell, S. V., & Joyce, T. (2012). Effects of the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC): A Review of Recent Research (Summary) (No. 968b31ffad2c4a088c18c21b6954060a). Mathematica Policy Research.

Foster, E. M., Jiang, M., & Gibson‐Davis, C. M. (2010). The effect of the WIC program on the health of newborns. Health services research, 45(4), 1083-1104.

Kreider, B., Pepper, J. V., & Roy, M. (2018). Does the Women, Infants, and Children Program (WIC) Improve Infant Health Outcomes?.

Phelan, S., Hagobian, T., Brannen, A., Hatley, K. E., Schaffner, A., Muñoz-Christian, K., & Tate, D. F. (2017). Effect of an internet-based program on weight loss for low-income postpartum women: a randomized clinical trial. Jama, 317(23), 2381-2391.