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Vale of York CCG staff make NHS70 exercise pledge

Staff from the NHS Vale of York Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) have pledged to donate thousands of miles of exercise and physical activity to the help the NHS this year.

Staff members hope to improve their health by taking part in regular physical activity throughout 2018 as a collective birthday present to the NHS, which turns 70 tomorrow (Thursday 5 July).

They will be logging miles earned from regular activity – walking, running, cycling, swimming or other activity (everything counts) – and will also participate in a series of specially organised sport activities, including gym challenges, group walks and more.

Their individual miles will be logged on an online activity tracker, while their collective progress will be charted on a Europe-themed wall display at the CCG’s headquarters at West Offices, Station Rise, York. The aim is to see how many European cities they can ‘travel to’ throughout the year.

Members of the public are also welcome to donate 1,000 miles or more to the NHS throughout the course of the year. Obviously, the more active you are, the healthier you become - and that’s great news for the NHS.

There are many ways to get involved - with dedicated Facebook and Strava groups to sign up to, while you can post updates using the #NHS1000miles hashtag on Twitter or simply jot down your miles in a notebook.

For more information about taking part in the NHS 1000 miles challenge, visit www.england.nhs.uk/nhs70/get-involved/donate-1000-miles/

Dr Kevin Smith, the CCG’s Executive Director of Primary Care and Population Health, said: “The CCG offers flexible working hours to staff so they can take part in physical activity at convenient times, with lunchtime running and badminton sessions proving particularly popular.

“We’ll be logging this regular activity, as well as taking part in specially organised physical activity events, to ensure we donate as many miles to the NHS as we possibly can throughout the year.

“Being active is great for your physical health and also can improve mental wellbeing. So if you’re looking for some motivation to be more active, consider taking part in the NHS70 1,000-mile challenge.”

The CCG has recently held several engagement events to promote 70 years of the NHS; and also to raise awareness of a number of key healthcare issues, including prevention and self-care, tackling loneliness and isolation, and creating a sustainable NHS.

At these events Vale of York residents have been encouraged to sign pledge cards to do something positive to improve their health and wellbeing to ensure that any positive health outcomes spurred by NHS70 are long lasting.

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