Boston STEPS: Creating sustainable systems to promote walking

Anne McHugh, MS, Boston Public Health Commission, 1010 Massachusetts Ave, Boston, MA 02118, 617-534-2616, amchugh@bphc.org and Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, Deputy Director, Boston Public Health Commission, 1010 Massacusetts Ave., 6th floor, Boston, MA 02118.

Boston STEPS is a community mobilization effort to reduce the burden of overweight/obesity, diabetes, and asthma in seven neighborhoods that collectively have the highest rates of these chronic health conditions in Boston. Key features include: · A broad Consortium of community stakeholders that is collaborating in the planning and implementation of STEPS. The Consortium’s working structure is based on six teams that are addressing health promotion and disease management in the context of people’s daily lives – Neighborhood Wellness, Walkable Neighborhoods, Healthy Eating, Workplace Wellness, Health Care Systems and School Health. · A five-year community action plan with a major focus on chronic disease prevention through behavior change in the areas of increased physical activity, healthy eating and not using tobacco. · A comprehensive set of initiatives built on three core strategies: o Create and sustain a network of wellness and disease management activities for individuals; o Improve health care systems to integrate health behavior change into primary care; o Identify and address environmental and institutional factors that contribute to disease burden. One major initiative is NeighborWalk, with the following key components: · Mobilize residents to walk on a regular basis through neighborhood walking groups. 40 community-based organizations receive mini-grants to sponsor groups, with Boston STEPS providing health education and technical assistance. · Promote the health benefits of walking through a community-based marketing campaign, with a branded NeighborWalk logo”; · Identify and address policy and infrastructure interventions to improve the ‘walkability’ of neighborhoods, including maintaining safe and attractive walking routes.

Learning Objectives:

At the conclusion of the presentation, the participant in this session will be able to

· Describe why promoting walking is an effective local public health intervention as part of a campaign to address obesity/overweight and type 2 diabetes;
· Identify the basic elements of a successful local walking program;
· Identify short- and intermediate-term steps that community members and city agencies can take to improve the ‘walkability’ of their neighborhoods.

Keywords: Physical Activity, Weight Management

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.

Recorded presentation

STEPS to a Healthier US Initiative: National and Community-Level Strategies to Address Chronic Disease

The 132nd Annual Meeting (November 6-10, 2004) of APHA