Issued: 12 Jun 2024
Staff in Raigmore Hospital are being encouraged to take that extra step after pedometers were delivered to each department by the hospital's Health Improvement Team.
Everyone is encouraged to be physically active for at least 30 minutes every day to benefit their general health and fitness. Activity, like walking, that can be included in a normal day is more likely to be maintained. Fiona Clarke, Health Promotion Specialist for NHS Highland, explained:
"We are encouraging staff to see how many steps they take in a working day, and then try to increase this by 3,000 steps. We have already noticed that some staff are already very active, two of our Outpatient Porters are walking the equivalent of a trek from Inverness to Beauly - that's 14 miles a day, or around 28,000 steps.
Even on their days off the staff are keeping an eye on how many steps they walk, a Charge Nurse on one of the hospital's surgical wards did 16,181 steps, about eight miles. Imagine how many he would do when on the ward?
For staff who are finding that they can increase their steps the pedometers are proving to be quite the incentive. One member of staff from the Administration team found that, on average, she was walking about two miles, just under 5,000 steps. By day three she had doubled that distance.
Even simple things like taking the stairs instead of the lift or leaving your desk at lunchtime and going for a brisk walk can make all the difference."