"Take the Stairs" Campaign Launched to Promote Physical Activity

Amy Gepner, Evergreen Healthcare

(Right, top) Joan McBride, Deputy Mayor of Kirkland, Allene Mares, Regional Health Officer for Public Health - Seattle & King County and Steve Brown, CEO of Evergreen Healthcare. (Right, bottom) Joan, Allene and Steve are joined by Seattle King County Advisory Council for Aging and Disability Services Councilmember John Barnett, Elaine Cummins of Public Health - Seattle & King County, Community Relations Director for Evergreen Laurene Burton, and Jeff Price from Kirkland Parks & Community Relations.

Take the stairs instead of the elevator. It's an easy, healthy choice for most!

In an effort to increase physical activity, KAPAC (Kirkland: A Physically Active Community) and the King County Overweight Prevention Initiative recently launched the Take the Stairs Campaign. The campaign uses signs encouraging people to use the stairs and not elevators as a means of raising their daily physical activity level. Increasing the amount of regular, routine physical activity is an important strategy to improve overall health and well-being and to decrease the risk of diseases such as diabetes and some types of cancer.

The stairway "point of decision" signs were ceremoniously installed Friday, October 28 at Evergreen Hospital Medical Center in Kirkland. Representatives from Evergreen, the City of Kirkland, and Public Health - Seattle & King County were on hand to unveil the new campaign.

"We want to make healthy choices easy for the community," said Dorothy Teeter, Interim Director and Health Officer, Public Health - Seattle & King County. "Every little bit of physical activity counts, and these signs are a simple, but needed, reminder that taking the stairs can really make a difference in your health."

"The City of Kirkland realizes that a healthy community is an active community," said City of Kirkland Deputy Mayor Joan McBride. "The Take the Stairs initiative is a great first step in reminding us to make personal choices that emphasize activity in our daily lives."

KAPAC leaders are encouraging both public and private businesses throughout King County and beyond to use the stairway signs. The signs have been installed in Kirkland City Hall and other city-owned buildings with stairways.

"As employers, we have a responsibility to do what we can to help encourage healthy lifestyles among not just our employees but the entire community," said Evergreen Healthcare CEO Steven E. Brown, FACHE. "Obviously this is something Evergreen is passionate about, so we were delighted to be the first site to display the Take the Stairs signs."

While it is still early in the campaign, there have already been results.  Evergreen staff have reported seeing patients and coworkers choose to take the stairs after seeing the signs. And that is, after all, the point of the campaign!

If you would like to install these signs in your location, you can download them from the City of Kirkland Web site's Step Up to Health section.