College Warrior Athlete Initiative and academic nursing

Abstract

Objective

The College Warrior Athlete Initiative (CWAI) determined if a key element of military occupational culture, referred to as the “battle-buddy” concept of pairing college athletes with veterans, could be applied to Student Service Members/Veterans (SSM/V) health promotion. Participants: Fifty veterans of fifty-seven enrolled completed the program in seven separate cohorts between 2016 and 2017. Methods: The veteran-student athlete pairs or small groups exercised twice a week for 75 min under the supervision of a certified athletic trainer and attended wellness classes. Results: Of the data from 50 veterans, over 2/3rd of veterans lost weight during their 12-week program and reported increased overall health, mood, energy levels and social engagement. Conclusions: This exercise intervention program implemented at two university campuses indicates the benefits of engaging SSM/Vs and college students for physical exercise to improve health. Results provide a foundation for academic nursing in conjunction with other university departments to increase peer cohesion and a sense of community for SSM/Vs.

Keywords:

• athletics
• mental health
• nutrition

Additional information

Funding

In 2015, the Wounded Warrior Foundation sought proposals that would focus on improving the health of wounded warriors. The call for proposals was responding to a study conducted by the wounded warrior project.org, reporting that over half (51.9%) of veterans surveyed in a recent study rated their health as being fair or poor; 42.6% of veterans were obese (BMI of 30 or higher); 39.7% were overweight (BMI score of 25–29.9%).⁵ The data suggested that less than 20% of veterans were within the normal range and increased weight was adversely impacting their social engagement and emotional outlook.⁵