Parish Nurses LENTEN/EASTER PEDOMETER  PROGRAM EVALUATION

GRAND TOTAL MILES:

                8055 miles for 10 weeks during Lent and Easter

 KEEP:

-          Use of the weekly  booklet with the psalms , only make it larger

-          The program helped remind people to walk, or exercise, especially outside

-          It reminded people to pray daily

-          Instruction on body location to wear the pedometer and use of attachment to clothing (to avoid losing it in the toilet!)

-          Free pedometers were a very good thing!  Would have liked to get more than the 200 we received from Kaiser

-          Keep Kaiser as the source of pedometers

-          Handouts were informative

-          Appealed to all ages of parishioners

-          Keep doing an evaluation if we do this again

-          More people did walk, but it was difficult to tell how many because no groups were formed and people often stopped turning in the step counts after 2 weeks.

DROP:

-          Separate sheet of explanation and tips with place for person to keep for themselves their weekly step totals, besides turning them in on the individual weekly pages, although one person expressed an interest in using this when she would have forgotten to turn in her slips.

-          The unclear goal – make it more clear!

ADD:

-          A definite destination for our combined miles to take us

-          Periodic walking trips as a parish or smaller groups to places such as the Wildwood Trail in Forest Park, Eastside Esplanade along the Willamette River

-          Advertise Senior Strolls sponsored by the Portland Parks and Recreation Dept.

-          Form walking groups (or advertise existing groups) for different times of day, and different interests, such as the Audubon Society and list these in a separate booklet.

-          A date on the slips to be turned in weekly

-          More pedometers, and keep some out to replace those that malfunction

-          Weekly bulletin reports on our group progress

-          Sitting types of exercises and how they can translate into steps for those unable to walk

-          More fitness emphasis

-          Make clear it is sponsored by the Parish Nurse Ministry

-          Give regular tips to help people increase their activity – do mall walking – other forms of exercise such as yoga, wt. lifting or exercise ball workouts

CHANGE :

-          Do for 4-5 weeks several times a year or have two walks a year, such as in Lent  and in the Fall

-          The tracking signage needs to be more clear to show what we are doing and why

-          Perhaps use a huge thermometer type drawing hung in the gym to track our combined progress to a specified destination

-          Advertise that it is for all levels of walking

-          Emphasize the aerobic exercise component translating into steps

-          Make it a relay walk around Fernhill Park

-          Do a type of marathon walk such as the Portland to Coast Walk or St. Clare’s Fr. Tom’s Trek – use liability protocols with a Dr.’s note for obtaining healthy participants

-          Continue walking and have a psalm available, no matter what the liturgical season, using  a psalm phrase from that week’s Sunday readings

-          If we make the walk more frequent or continuous, look into another source of pedometers, as the ones we have will have a battery that will expire and the cost of the replacement battery will be as much as the cost of the original pedometers.  Barb – Legacy and Alice – Providence

-          Keep it even more simple

FURTHER  SUGGESTIONS:

-          Have a way to measure personal progress for those who would like to track it – such as wt. measurement, BMI, Blood pressure check, recording how you feel each week

-          Use incentives such as tying it more to holistic methods, personal challenges, motivate each other, choose a partner, good foot wear, drinking adequate water and wearing good foot wear.

-          Contact the Foot Traffic store on 42^nd and Fremont for a group discount on good walking shoes

-          Emphasize the aerobic calculation to step equivalents

TRACKING:

     For a total of 200 pedometers, we received an average of reports from 18 – 20 people.  On week 4  with 38 miles reported by everyone, that calculated to only 4.25 miles  when spread out to all 200 people who received one.  Anecdotal evidence revealed that many people stopped tracking their number of steps after two weeks.  Those who responded to the formal evaluation form reported they also stopped counting after 4,5,9 and 10 weeks.

     The benefits reported were that it kept their weight even, brought more spirituality to their walk, and the activity kept an awareness of the psalm in a person’s head.

     Some problems encountered were difficulty opening the pedometer by many people, “shuffle walking”  and elliptical machines didn’t register on pedometer; the pedometers kept falling off, getting flushed down!  The elliptical walking machines didn’t register the steps on the pedometer.

ANECDOTES:

“Walking helped me keep the psalm in my head”

“This brought more spirituality to my walks”

“A recently retired parishioner was so encouraged to walk, he walked from N.E. Portland to the downtown Post Office, and has started walking all over town!”

“This was the best thing anyone ever did for me in all the years I have been at St. Charles”

“It was just fabulous”

“I was sorry I was on vacation when they were handed out and you were unable to get more”

“I’m glad you didn’t stop when Lent was over, but continued for 10 weeks”

“Could we have slips available to keep turning in even though the walk is finished?”