Marquette General Weight Loss Center, Bariatric & Metabolic Medicine

 Health Check List

Shaping Our Children's Future is a three year initiative funded in part by the Health Resource and Services Administration, Office of Rural Health Policy that began May 1, 2006. Grant partners are Helen Newberry Joy Hospital in Luce County, Marquette General Hospital in Marquette County and Mackinac Straits Hospital in Mackinac County.

Eleven percent (11%) are considered overweight and 13% are at risk for overweight. These youth are likely to become overweight adults with all the serious health conditions, psychological issues, and health care costs that arise with excess weight and energy imbalance.

Two Critical Access Hospitals join with their regional referral center toward the Healthy People 2010 goal of reducing the proportion of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese.

We target families in the three counties of Luce, Mackinac, and Marquette in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula – a population of 83,601. State statistics suggest there are 5,598 youth ages 5-19 who are overweight or obese within this service area.

Local staff will provide patient follow-up and communication streams among health care providers. An evaluation team, headed by a nationally recognized researcher at Northern Michigan University will conduct evaluation for process and outcome measures.

The fiscal agent for the grant is Helen Newberry Joy Hospital and Healthcare Center, a Critical Access Hospital with an attached long-term care facility, a rural health clinic, and three outreach health clinics. Consortium partners are Mackinac Straits Hospital (Critical Access Hospital) and Marquette General Health System (364-bed regional referral center). Staff will be dedicated to this project within each partner organization, strengthening the role of each partner while cooperating on all activities. An advisory group of project staff, community stakeholders and representatives from the target group will oversee this project.