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Funding Period:
2003–2008
The Steps Program in Thurston County,
Washington
CDC’s Steps Program funds states, cities, and tribal groups to implement
community-based chronic disease prevention programs to reduce the burden of
obesity, diabetes, and asthma by addressing three related risk factors:
physical inactivity, poor nutrition, and tobacco use. Steps-funded programs
are showing what can be done locally in schools, work sites, communities,
and health care settings to promote healthier lifestyles and help people
make long-lasting and sustainable changes that can reduce their risk for
chronic diseases.
Background
With a population of 238,000, Thurston County is the sixth most populous
county in the State of Washington, with a mixture of cities, small towns,
and rural areas. The county is a center of regional employment, with high
concentrations of public-sector and smaller business employers. The median
household income is $49,673; nearly 11% of county residents live below the
federal poverty level (2005 U.S. Census Bureau estimates). The Thurston
County Steps Program serves the entire county population, with various
interventions focused on specific subpopulations (e.g., prevention of
overweight among infants and preschool-age children; promotion of physical
activity—especially walking—for older adults and women ages 30 to 59).
Spotlight on Success
- The Steps Program in Thurston County has worked closely with a
regional association of health care providers to offer learning
opportunities for physicians and their staff members to become more
skilled in preventing and treating chronic diseases, particularly type 2
diabetes. The Diabetes Collaborative has involved 13 providers over the
past 3 years; these providers now have more than 1300 patients entered
into chronic disease registries.
- The Steps Program in Thurston County, in close partnership with its
local Chamber of Commerce, established the WorkWell program, recognizing
the commitment and actual changes that employers—primarily small private
businesses—are making to support healthy eating and physical activity
during work hours. This work-site program recognized 11 employers,
affecting a workforce of more than 3600, for leadership commitment and
improvements in both healthy eating and physical activity during its
first year (2006–2007).
Community Partnerships
The Thurston County Steps Program began with a county-wide, multisector
leadership consortium and later evolved into more focused advisory groups:
the Active Communities work group, with the regional planning agency,
Intercity Transit, a local trails advocacy organization, the YMCA, and
neighborhood projects as partners; the Healthy Schools work group,
involving three school districts and the region’s educational service
district; the WorkWell work group, with representatives from private
sector businesses, the chamber of commerce, the local hospital, local
government, and local nonprofit service agencies; the Healthy Aging
Coalition, with the region’s agency on aging, a regional senior games
organization, the main local hospital, and the local senior services agency
as partners; the Healthy Food Labeling work group, which includes
representatives from the state restaurant association, the state schools
superintendent’s office, a local school district, the primary hospital’s
food service director, and a state office cafeteria services agency; and the
Local Planned Care Initiative (Diabetes Collaborative) planning
group, which includes two regional physicians networks and the primary
hospital’s diabetes center.
Contact
Steps to a HealthierWA–Thurston County
Thurston County Public Health and Social Services Department
Telephone: 360-786-5581
www.co.thurston.wa.us/health/steps*
*Links to non-Federal organizations are provided solely as a
service to our users. Links do not constitute an endorsement of any organization
by CDC or the Federal Government, and none should be inferred. The CDC is
not responsible for the content of the individual organization Web pages found
at this link.
One or more documents on this Web page are available in Adobe Acrobat® Format
(PDF).
You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view PDF files on this page.
Page last reviewed: July 31, 2008
Page last modified: July 31, 2008
Content source: Division of Adult and
Community Health, National
Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion
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