The Technology Center to Promote Healthy Lifestyles (TecHealth) is a South Carolina SmartState Center focused on research to develop and evaluate health promotion programs which encourage healthy lifestyles and reduce risk of disease by incorporating technology.
New and emerging technologies hold great promise for creating novel intervention approaches, as well as enhancing existing interventions with the addition of technological elements. Technology affords the ability to expand geographic reach of evidence-based interventions and to access underserved populations with programs which promote healthier lifestyles. The TecHealth research portfolio includes projects that address these domains, as well as efforts to explore how technology can be used to improve the assessment of lifestyle behaviors. TecHealth is also focused on training of the next generation of scholars who seek to promote healthy lifestyles through the use of technology.
Jason Yang initially pursued a career in teaching at the K-12 level. With bachelor’s and master’s degrees in education (concentration in psychology and counseling), he taught elementary school-aged children for six years in his native Taiwan. It was during a stint as a physical education teacher that the obesity epidemic really began to concern him.
TecHealth assistant professor Christine Pellegrini discusses her current research, advice for students, and what sparked her interest in behavior change and obesity treatment in the American College of Sports Medicine's "Meet the Member" feature.
Christine Pellegrini, TecHealth assistant professor, is collaborating with Dr. Jessica Unick (The Miriam Hospital) on a recently funded NIDDK R01 to examine the effect of extended coaching by phone on weight loss outcomes from an internet-based program. The study will also determine whether these effects are sustained once the phone coaching is removed, and if these interventions are effective from a cost perspective.
Techealth Director, Dr. Delia West, has received the Pioneer Award for Excellence in the Field from the Obesity Society's eHealth/mHealth Section. The award is given to recipients for demonstrating excellence in the field and paving the way for further advancements in technologies to enhance obesity research, prevention and treatment.