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    Home > Resource hub > Physical activity for public health: in pursuit of rigorous evaluation in the real world

Physical activity for public health: in pursuit of rigorous evaluation in the real world

Dr David Ogilvie, from Cambridge University, explores the opportunities and challenges in attempting rigorous evaluation of environmental approaches to promoting physical activity.

Cambridge University epidemiologist Dr David Ogilvie was keynote speaker at this seminar on 17 March 2016 jointly hosted by The Australian Prevention Partnership Centre, the Prevention Research Collaboration (PRC) at the University of Sydney and the Sax Institute.

Physical activity can reduce the risk and burden of many chronic diseases, but there is little evidence of public health strategies that have been effective in shifting population activity patterns in the right direction. The solutions may lie in environmental and policy changes well beyond the health sector, but these can be contentious or expensive and are often difficult to evaluate.

In his presentation, Dr Ogilvie explored the rationale for, and challenges of, attempting rigorous evaluation of environmental policies and interventions to promote a more active way of life.

Dr Ogilvie, who spoke about his work on evaluating large-scale urban infrastructure projects in the UK, said such evaluation could identify factors essential for improving public health.

The seminar, chaired by PRC Director Professor Adrian Bauman, also featured panellists Professor Don Nutbeam, Senior Advisor at the Sax Institute; Ms Elizabeth Flynn, from the Australian Government Department of Health; and Professor William Trochim from Cornell University.

About Dr David Ogilvie

Dr Ogilvie qualified in medicine at the University of Cambridge and trained in general practice in the east of England, in public health medicine in the west of Scotland, and in public health research at the MRC Social and Public Health Sciences Unit in Glasgow, before returning to the University of Cambridge to join the MRC Epidemiology Unit in 2007.

He leads the Unit’s Physical Activity and Public Health research program, which explores population-level approaches to the promotion of active living by evaluating the effects of environmental and policy interventions and understanding related patterns and mechanisms of behaviour change. His methodological interests lie in the design of population-level intervention studies and in evidence synthesis. He specialises in the relationships between transport, the environment, physical activity and health and leads an interdisciplinary group of researchers working in this area, particularly on the design and analysis of natural experimental studies such as the Commuting and Health in Cambridge, iConnect and M74 studies.

Details

DATE 17 Mar 2016

TYPE Videos

Prevention experts

  • Emeritus Professor Adrian Bauman AO

    The University of Sydney
    Headshot of Adrian Bauman
  • Dr David Ogilvie

    Cambridge University

Topics

  • Physical activity ,

Prevention methodologies

  • Implementation, evaluation and scale up ,
  • New methods and tools ,
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Acknowledgement of Country

The Australian Prevention Partnership Centre acknowledges Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Australians and Traditional Custodians of the lands where we live, learn, and work.

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The Australian Prevention Partnership Centre is funded by the NHMRC, Australian Government Department of Health, ACT Health, Cancer Council Australia, NSW Ministry of Health, Wellbeing SA, Tasmanian Department of Health, and VicHealth. The Australian Government also contributed through the Medical Research Future Fund. Queensland Health became a financial contributor in 2022. The Prevention Centre is administered by the Sax Institute.

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