‘Take the Stairs’ campaign will be launched at Evergreen Hospital to promote physical activity

Kirkland, WA - 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 are launching the ‘Take the Stairs’ campaign with 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 decisions signs will be ceremoniously installed Friday, October 28 at 1:30 p.m. in the Evergreen Hospital Medical Center lobby near the elevators.

Sign installers will include:

Steven E. Brown, CEO, Evergreen Healthcare, FACHE
Allene Mares, Regional Health Officer, Public Health - Seattle & King County
Joan McBride, Deputy Mayor, City of Kirkland

“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 will be 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 are delighted to be the first site to display the ‘Take the Stairs’ signs.”

The ‘Take the Stairs’ signs are available for download and reproduction and by calling 425-899-1882.

Kirkland: A Physically Active Community, or KAPAC, is a partnership among Evergreen Healthcare, City of Kirkland and Public Health - Seattle & King County, and includes members from the Kirkland Senior Council and a representative from the PTSA, Kirkland Youth programs and childhood nutritionists. The group was inspired by the information they learned at a forum of the King County Overweight Prevention Initiative.

The King County Overweight Prevention Initiative is sponsored by the King County Board of Health, the University of Washington Exploratory Center for Obesity Research and Center for Public Health Nutrition, and Public Health - Seattle & King County. The Initiative is advancing a 10-point action plan on nutrition, physical activity, design for active living and communications.

About Public Health - Seattle & King County
Public Health - Seattle & King County is among the nation’s largest metropolitan health departments, and it touches people's lives every day through health promotion and prevention activities, disease surveillance, health care, outreach and referral services, environmental health services, emergency medical care, jail health services, and readiness and response to public health emergencies.

About City of Kirkland
The City of Kirkland, incorporated in 1905, has a population of over 45,000. It is the eighteenth largest city in the State of Washington. The city government offers a full range of services which are provided by nine operating departments. The City boasts thirty-eight parks, eleven that are located on the waterfront, as well as a community center, senior center, swimming pool and teen center.

About Evergreen Healthcare
Evergreen Hospital Medical Center has 244 beds and is the cornerstone of Evergreen Healthcare that includes medical groups, home care, hospice and many other services and community health outreach programs. Evergreen serves more than 400,000 residents throughout north King and south Snohomish counties. More than 700 physicians, representing over 50 specialties, provide clinical excellence in all major services including cardiac, oncology, surgery and maternity care at Evergreen Hospital Medical Center .

# # #