Exercise Is Medicine On Campus Week 2016: Increasing Campus-wide Integration And Coordination

BACKGROUND: Exercise is Medicine on Campus (EIMOC) is an international initiative promoting physical activity (PA) participation on college campuses, targeting the decline in PA seen with the transition to college. Pennsylvania State University has been promoting EIMOC since 2010 and hosting annual EIMOC Week events since 2012. PURPOSE: To evaluate strategies for expanding EIMOC partnerships and collaborations across campus since 2015. METHODS: EIMOC Week has been held each year since 2012. In an attempt to expand and enhance the impact of EIMOC, the EIMOC committee has worked to improve campus-wide integration and increase participation and support from other University entities. Following the 2016 EIMOC Week event, organizations that participated or provided support through the 2015-2016 campaign were interviewed regarding future goals, EIMOC impressions, barriers to collaboration, and general observations. Results were complied, transcribed and coded for common themes. RESULTS: Organizations working with EIMOC (n=15) were divided into three categories: University entities, student organizations, and community outreach. University entities (n=7) included University divisions and departments (e.g. academic unit, colleges), student health services, and campus recreation. Student organizations (n=4) were primarily undergraduate and graduate students groups, such as clubs. Community outreach entities (n=4) included private businesses and other off-campus organizations. All of the organizations strongly supported the concept of EIMOC, and were interested (93%) in supporting EIMOC in a mutually-beneficial fashion (i.e. referrals, increasing membership). Future goals included expanded collaboration (53%) and a more defined partnership (40%). Common barriers to collaboration were time (80%), logistics (80%), available resources (40%) and departmental/university rules and regulations (47%). CONCLUSIONS: The current study offered insight on the challenges and potential success in expanding EIMOC on a large campus. As this EIMOC initiative enters its 7th year, expanding its reach and improving University-wide collaborations are key for sustained impact. Identifying common strategic goals and pooling resources across multiple entities may prove essential to the future of EIMOC.