Determining the impact of walk Kansas: Applying a team-building approach to community physical activity promotion

Background: Research and practice partnerships have the potential to enhance the translation of research findings into practice. Purpose: This paper describes such a partnership in the development of Walk Kansas (WK) and highlights individual and organizational level outcomes. Method: Phase 1 examined: (a) the reach of WK, (b) physical activity changes, and (c) maintenance of physical activity changes 6 months after the program was completed. Phase 2 explored WK adoption and sustainability over 5 years. Results: WK attracted a large number of participants who were more likely to be female, more active, and older than the adult population within the counties where they resided. Inactive or insufficiently active participants at baseline experienced significant increases in both moderate (p<0.001) and vigorous (p<0.001) physical activity. A random selection of participants who were assessed 6 months post-program did not demonstrate a significant decrease in moderate or vigorous activity between program completion and 6-month follow-up. The number of counties adopting the program increased across years, peaking at 97 in 2006 and demonstrated the sustainability of the WK over 5 years. Conclusions: WK is effective, has a broad reach, and enables participants to maintain increased activity. It also shows promise for broad adoption and sustainability.