Hello Bronwyn,

My name is Natasha Beauchamp and I work for a company in the U.S. that
makes multimedia programs for health education. We are currently working on
a web-based interactive video program which is designed to be used in
worksites. It is oriented toward the "barely active" or "sedentary" crowd.
There is plently on the web and elsewhere for people interested in a strong
"jock-like" fitness program. Our "audience" is the "contemplator," possibly
even "pre-contemplator" who hates anything that looks or sounds like
exercise.

To describe the website informally, the idea is simply to help employees to
"get moving" and involves lots of non-traditional ways to become more
physically active, at work, at home, etc. If it develops as we are hoping
(still in the development stage), there will also be sections on addressing
mental, emotional and physical barriers to physical activity, working with
body image issues, etc. No one is going to shed a lot of pounds or rack up
a lot of METS with this program, but if we can get people to "make friends"
with their bodies and feel better about being more physical, we feel we
will have moved them toward a more healthy lifestyle. (If not immediately
obvious, there is a strong Stage of Change orientation here, focusing on
individual behavior change...This is the U.S. afterall!)

The program utilizes lots of video, what we call "peer-based testimonials,"
of real people talking about how they have overcome their barriers. There
are demonstrations of simple exercises people can do at their desks, and
suggestions that address the problems of juggling home, work and exercise
(e.g., "sneaky ways to squeeze physical activity into your day"). The
program will also encourage people to make physical activity goals (become
"prepare/deciders"), and provides a way for them to come back and monitor
their progress ("action" and "maintenance"). If we can, we'd like to
include a bulletin board that helps people in the worksite link up with an
exercise buddy. Not sure we'll be able to pull that off yet.

Unfortunately, we don't expect to be ready until January 2002, so not sure
this is super helpful for you. Also, it's not specifically for health care
workers. But, it is an example of innovative approaches to getting
employees more physically active. Hope this helps (or gives you ideas).

Natasha Beauchamp


>I work in a health care setting. I am interested in information around
>capacity building within organisations for increasing physical activity
>amongst health workers.
>thanks
>Bronwyn Holmberg
>Project Worker
>Health Promotion Unit
>Community Health Bendigo
>[log in to unmask]


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Natasha Beauchamp
Project Coordinator
ORegon Center for Applied Science, Inc. (ORCAS)
1839 Garden Ave.
Eugene, OR  97405

Tel: (541) 342-7227
Toll Free: (888) 349-5472
Fax: (541) 342-4270
mailto:[log in to unmask]
Website: http://www.orcasinc.com