Development of Strategies to Improve the National Nutrition Survey System / 대한지역사회영양학회지

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: The current survey environment is changing and participation rates in national nutrition surveys are decreasing. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to develop strategies for improving the nutrition survey system in the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES). METHODS: To develop an alternative system for conducting the KNHANES nutritional survey, we conducted focus group interviews with stakeholders of the survey, SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) analysis, and expert reviews. In addition, spatial analysis of potential sites for conducting surveys instead of relying on household visits was performed, and the perception of nutritional surveys in the population eligible for KNHANES was evaluated. RESULTS: Based on the results of the focus group interviews, SWOT analysis, and expert reviews, we propose two options for survey sites: vehicles specifically prepared for nutritional surveys and public facilities such as community service centers or public health centers. Among public facilities, community service centers were found to be more appropriate sites than public health centers because they were considered more accessible. About 90% of respondents would participate in the survey in public facilities and about 74% would in vehicles. CONCLUSIONS: Conducting national nutrition surveys in specially designed vehicles and public facilities could be a viable alternative to home visits. Next, the validity of these newly proposed nutrition survey methods needs to be compared to the results of the current national nutrition survey.