Other Titles
Steps to Wellness: A CoNmUnity Walking Together [Title Slide]
Other Titles
Rapid Presentation Round
Abstract
Purpose: The aim of this project was to promote the health and wellness of nursing academia faculty and staff by implementing a physical movement initiative.
Background: Promoting the health and wellness of faculty and staff working in nursing academia is an important and timely initiative (Amaya et al., 2019; Mabona et al., 2022). Researchers have noted that an individual's lifestyle behaviors directly affect their work productivity, physical activity, and stress levels (Labrague et al., 2022; Reif et al., 2020; Stanulewicz et al., 2020). Amaya et al. (2019) suggested that institutions of higher education could improve work-life balance by “creating campus cultures that foster health and well-being” (p. 27). A College of Nursing (CON) Wellness Committee sought to address all dimensions of health and wellness among faculty and staff and a sub-committee was formed to address the physical aspect of wellness. The sub-committee devised an idea for a movement challenge that would include a team-based approach whereby individuals would track their steps and add to the group’s total with the goal being to log enough steps collectively to equate walking around the world. The sub-committee decided that to promote equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) the participants would be allowed to count movement of any type toward the total “steps.” Researchers support the consideration for EDI in wellness initiatives as this promotes participation and fosters a sense of belonging (Melnyk et al., 2020; Weinstein, 2022). To further the EDI consideration, pedometers were purchased with a grant and made available for those who did not have another device to track their movements.
Methods: Participants were recruited for the project through an email sent to all faculty and staff in the CON. To keep participants informed of the team progress, weekly emails were sent out and a map was placed in a high-traffic area with colored tacks used to highlight different locations as new milestones were achieved. This visible reminder was found to be a motivating factor to continue with the steps initiative. The team also asked for the input of a wellness-focused department on campus who provide fitness services for the university and community. This department helped plan the initiative and adopted it on a larger university scale once the project was complete.
Assessment findings: The Steps to Wellness project was deemed a success. Among the 66 participants, over 89 million steps were accrued, and the team exceeded 42,000 miles. The team traveled through four continents and 36 countries in all. Feedback from faculty and staff was positive. Participants stated that they enjoyed the low-stakes team-based aspect to the initiative and were motivated by the visible update of their progress. They also noted less stress and feeling increased professional and personal well-being.
Conclusions: Wellness Committee initiatives can be designed successfully to improve professional and personal well-being of nursing academia faculty and staff. Collaboration with other university departments with a focus on wellness is beneficial and can result in a more successful and expanded movement program.
Notes
References:
Amaya, M., Donegan, T., Conner, D., Edwards, J., & Gipson, C. (2019). Creating a culture of wellness: A call to action for higher education, igniting change in academic institutions. Building Healthy Academic Communities Journal, 3(2), 27-40. https://doi.org/10.18061/bhac.v3i2.7117
Labrague, L. J., Al Sabei, S., Al Rawajfah, O., Abu Al Rub, R., & Burney, I. (2022). Interprofessional collaboration as a mediator in the relationship between nurse work environment, patient safety outcomes and job satisfaction among nurses. Journal of Nursing Management, 30, 268-278. https://doi.org/10.1111/jonm.13491.
Mabona, J. F., van Rooyen, D., & ten Ham-Baloyi, W. (2022). Best practice recommendations for healthy work environments for nurses: An integrative literature review. Health SA Gesondheid, 2022(27), 1788. doi: 10.4102/hsag.v27i0.1788
Melnyk, B. M., Kelly, S. A., Stephens, J., Dhakal, K., McGovern, C., Tucker, S., Hoying, J., McRae, K., Ault, S., Spurlock, E., & Bird, S. B. (2020). Interventions to improve mental health, well-being, physical health, and lifestyle behaviors in physicians and nurses: A systematic review. American Journal of Health Promotion, 34(8), 929–941. doi:10.1177/0890117120920451
Stanulewicz, N., Knox, E., Narayanasamy, M., Shiviji, N., Khunti, K., & Blake, H. (2019). Effectiveness of lifestyle health promotion interventions for nurses: A systematic review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(1), 17. doi: 10.3390/ijerph17010017
Reif, J., Chan, D., Jones, D., Payne, L., & Molitor, D. (2020). Effects of a workplace wellness program on employee health, health beliefs, and medical use: A randomized clinical trial. Journal of the American Medical Association Internal Medicine, 180(7), 952-960.
Weinstein, M. (2022). Strategic choice and implementation of workplace wellness programs in the United States. Healthcare, 10(7), 1216. doi: 10.3390/healthcare10071216
Sigma Membership
Alpha
Type
Presentation
Format Type
Text-based Document
Study Design/Type
Other
Research Approach
Other
Keywords:
Work Environment, Wellness, Organizational Culture, Health Promotion, Faculty
Recommended Citation
Clifton, Jennifer M.; Caserta, Michael; Armstrong, Cheryl; Friberg-Felsted, Katarina; Macali, Jennifer; and Simonsen, Sara, "Creating a Healthy Workplace Culture With a “Steps to Wellness” Initiative" (2026). Creating Healthy Work Environments (CHWE). 19.
https://www.sigmarepository.org/chwe/2024/presentations_2024/19
Conference Name
Creating Healthy Work Environments
Conference Host
Sigma Theta Tau International
Conference Location
Washington, DC, USA
Conference Year
2024
Rights Holder
All rights reserved by the author(s) and/or publisher(s) listed in this item record unless relinquished in whole or part by a rights notation or a Creative Commons License present in this item record. All permission requests should be directed accordingly and not to the Sigma Repository. All submitting authors or publishers have affirmed that when using material in their work where they do not own copyright, they have obtained permission of the copyright holder prior to submission and the rights holder has been acknowledged as necessary.
Review Type
Abstract Review Only: Reviewed by Event Host
Acquisition
Proxy-submission
Date of Issue
2026-02-12
Creating a Healthy Workplace Culture With a “Steps to Wellness” Initiative
Washington, DC, USA
Purpose: The aim of this project was to promote the health and wellness of nursing academia faculty and staff by implementing a physical movement initiative.
Background: Promoting the health and wellness of faculty and staff working in nursing academia is an important and timely initiative (Amaya et al., 2019; Mabona et al., 2022). Researchers have noted that an individual's lifestyle behaviors directly affect their work productivity, physical activity, and stress levels (Labrague et al., 2022; Reif et al., 2020; Stanulewicz et al., 2020). Amaya et al. (2019) suggested that institutions of higher education could improve work-life balance by “creating campus cultures that foster health and well-being” (p. 27). A College of Nursing (CON) Wellness Committee sought to address all dimensions of health and wellness among faculty and staff and a sub-committee was formed to address the physical aspect of wellness. The sub-committee devised an idea for a movement challenge that would include a team-based approach whereby individuals would track their steps and add to the group’s total with the goal being to log enough steps collectively to equate walking around the world. The sub-committee decided that to promote equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) the participants would be allowed to count movement of any type toward the total “steps.” Researchers support the consideration for EDI in wellness initiatives as this promotes participation and fosters a sense of belonging (Melnyk et al., 2020; Weinstein, 2022). To further the EDI consideration, pedometers were purchased with a grant and made available for those who did not have another device to track their movements.
Methods: Participants were recruited for the project through an email sent to all faculty and staff in the CON. To keep participants informed of the team progress, weekly emails were sent out and a map was placed in a high-traffic area with colored tacks used to highlight different locations as new milestones were achieved. This visible reminder was found to be a motivating factor to continue with the steps initiative. The team also asked for the input of a wellness-focused department on campus who provide fitness services for the university and community. This department helped plan the initiative and adopted it on a larger university scale once the project was complete.
Assessment findings: The Steps to Wellness project was deemed a success. Among the 66 participants, over 89 million steps were accrued, and the team exceeded 42,000 miles. The team traveled through four continents and 36 countries in all. Feedback from faculty and staff was positive. Participants stated that they enjoyed the low-stakes team-based aspect to the initiative and were motivated by the visible update of their progress. They also noted less stress and feeling increased professional and personal well-being.
Conclusions: Wellness Committee initiatives can be designed successfully to improve professional and personal well-being of nursing academia faculty and staff. Collaboration with other university departments with a focus on wellness is beneficial and can result in a more successful and expanded movement program.
Description
A Wellness Committee was formed to integrate team-based wellness initiatives for nursing faculty and staff. The focus was on activities that would lead to reduced stress and improved professional and personal well-being. The committee also collaborated with other wellness groups on campus dedicated to enhancing professional well-being among health professionals.