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Putting Promotion Into Practice: The African Americans Building a Legacy of Health Organizational Wellness Program

University of California, Los Angeles, School of Public Health, in Los Angeles, California

Lavonna Blair Lewis, PhD

MHA Program at the University of Southern California, School of Policy, Planning, and Development in Los Angeles, California

Joyce Jones Guinyard, DC

Community Health Councils, Inc., in Los Angeles, California

David C. Sloane, PhD

School of Policy, Planning, and Development at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, California

Lori Miller Nascimento, MPH

Division of Community Health at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, California

Lark Galloway-Gilliam

Community Health Councils, Inc., in Los Angeles, California

Allison L. Diamant, MD, MSHS

University of California, Los Angeles in Los Angeles, California

William J. McCarthy, PhD

University of California, Los Angeles and UCLA Division of Cancer Prevention and Control Research in Los Angeles, California

A Los Angeles REACH demonstration project led by Community Health Councils, Inc. adapted and implemented an organizational wellness intervention originally developed by the local health department, providing training in incorporating physical activity and healthy food choices into the routine "conduct of business" in 35 predominantly public and private, nonprofit-sector agencies. A total of 700 staff, members, or clients completed the 12-week or subsequently retooled 6-week curriculum. Attendance and retention rates between baseline and postintervention assessments were improved substantially in the shortened offering. Feelings of sadness or depression decreased significantly (p = .00), fruit and vegetable intake increased significantly (+0.5 servings/day, p = .00), and body mass index decreased marginally (-0.5 kg/m², p = .08) among 12-week participants. The numbers of days in which individuals participated in vigorous physical activity increased significantly among 6-week participants (+0.3, p = .00). This model holds promise for extending the reach of environmentally focused work-site wellness programming to organizations and at-risk populations not traditionally engaged by such efforts.

Key Words: lifestyle change • work site • workplace policy • practice • physical activity • nutrition • exercise • community-based participatory research

This version was published on July 1, 2006

Health Promotion Practice, Vol. 7, No. 3 suppl, 233S-246S (2006)
DOI: 10.1177/1524839906288696


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