 | The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
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| The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
Elaine Cummins, BA, Community Based Public Health Practice Team, Public Health-Seattle & King County, 14350 SE Eastgate Way, Bellevue, WA 98007, 206-296-9756, elaine.cummins@metrokc.gov
This session will demonstrate how Public Health partnered with existing city and county departments to maximize resources to promote physical activity. Six examples of neighborhood walking route maps will be displayed that were produced with suburban cities. The maps highlight community differences. Examples: one city maintains a walking route with an edible landscape. Residents are encouraged to pick and eat the seasonal fruit and berries. With Public Health as a partner , the “5 a Day” health promotion was featured on the walking map to reinforce healthy eating. This combined wellness message encouraged walking to prevent disease and added another venue for public health messages. Small neighborhood maps have also been produced to encourage walking to strengthen neighborhood cohesiveness. All maps feature Animal Control messages discussing an animal's need for exercise. Maps were produced using exisiting desktop publishing, digital photos and Geographic Information System mapping systems. The maps success made it possible to access local capacity dollars to defray printing costs. Public Health began partnering with parks departments but shifted to transportation departments as they were aware of more resources to make cities pedestrian friendly. By penetrating the cities infrastructures, money for the maps came from many different sources.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Physical Activity, Community Collaboration
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.