WIC Education Choice

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Check out Education Choice! With Education Choice, participants choose how they would like to receive nutrition education at follow up visits. Participants can choose from in-person, online or phone contacts.

Education Choice can benefit both participants and WIC staff

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Benefits for Participants

• Convenient: phone discussion & on-line learning is easy to access
• Relevant: Millennials are comfortable learning on-line
• Reduces Barriers to participation: addresses concerns with work schedule, transportation issues, lack of parking near clinic
• Saves time: less travel time and less "waiting room" time
• Individualizes the experience: The participant can select the learning method best for her

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Benefits for WIC Staff/Programs

• Variety: new opportunities to provide education
• Less pressure in clinic: fewer people in your waiting area
• New opportunities for scheduling: help manage caseload and staff schedules better
• Improves participant satisfaction: may improve caseload retention and participation
• Less rushed: Requires similar staff time, however you may feel less rushed when there are less people waiting to see you

Education Choice is not a "shortcut" for staff, nor should it diminish the quality of nutrition services. Rather, it expands opportunities to provide nutrition education, breastfeeding promotion and support.

Use the following resources to learn how to implement Education Choices in your agency. Contact your regional consultant if you have questions.

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Resources

Education Choice for Participants
Provides an overview of Education Choice and how to implement it.

• Module (SWF - 19 minutes)
• Script (PDF)

Checklist – Phone Education (PDF)
Outlines training, preparation and logistics of providing education over the phone.

Checklist – wichealth (PDF)
Outlines training, preparation and logistics of using wichealth for education.

Wichealth procedures (PDF)
Details how to implement wichealth in your agency.

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Phone Counseling Tips

Guidelines for Phone Education (PDF)
Step-by-Step guide for providing education over the phone.

Phone Tips (PDF)
Quick tips for phone counseling.

Phone Counseling Observation (PDF)
Checklist supervisors may use to assess staff competencies/skills with phone counseling.

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Appointment Menus

Appointment menu 8x11 (PDF)
WIC staff tool for presenting the 3 education choices to participants. Full sized menu.

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Education Choice Flyers

Nutrition Education on the Go, Staff Flyer (PDF)
Flyer for staff describing how to use wichealth.

Wichealth Flyers
Flyers for participants describing how to use Wichealth.

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Email and Text Tips

Using email or texts with wichealth (PDF)
Details ways to use interactive emails or texts for follow-up to a wichealth lesson.

SMS Gateway for wichealth lesson (PDF)
Details how to use SMS Gateway for sending and/or receive text messages.

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Additional wichealth.org Information

Wichealth.org Demonstration Webinar Slides (PDF)

Wichealth.org Lessons for the Minnesota WIC Program (PDF)

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