United Regional Launches Blue Zones Ignite to Improve Health and Well-being of Wichita Falls
United Regional and Blue Zones, the global leader in longevity research and community well-being transformation, have announced a partnership to launch a Blue Zones Ignite™ assessment in Wichita Falls.
Blue Zones uses an evidence-based, environmental approach to making healthy choices easier in the places where people spend the most time. Blue Zones will work with United Regional and other community leaders to conduct an in-depth readiness and feasibility assessment to determine how to make Wichita Falls a healthier place to live, work, and thrive. Together with the community, the Blue Zones team will assess readiness and build a plan for change.
“At United Regional, our mission is to transform lives through innovation, wellness and trusted care,” said Cory Edmondson, President & CEO of United Regional. “Partnering with Blue Zones gives us an opportunity to work alongside community leaders, employers, organizations and residents to create lasting improvements in the health and well-being for Wichita Falls and the surrounding communities. We believe meaningful change happens when a community comes together with a shared commitment to help people live healthier, more connected lives.”
Blue Zones employs a proven solution in collaboration with communities to help people live better and longer lives. The company’s work is based on research and principles developed by National Geographic Fellow and New York Times bestselling author Dan Buettner, who identified the cultures of the world – or blue zones – with the healthiest, longest-living populations.
The Blue Zones approach focuses on the largest determinant of health: the environment in which we live. Instead of focusing solely on individual behavior change, Blue Zones helps communities make permanent and semi-permanent changes to policies, systems, streets, surroundings, and social networks so it's easier for residents to eat wisely, move naturally, and connect more with others as they move throughout their day. By improving the Life Radius®—the area close to home where most Americans spend 90% of their lives—Blue Zones transformations have been able to move the needle dramatically in improving overall population health and well-being. Participating communities have seen double-digit drops in obesity and smoking rates, economic investment in downtown corridors, grant funding awards to support policies and programs to improve health equity, and measurable savings in healthcare costs.
Danny Buettner, Jr., Blue Zones Chief Development Officer, said: "We are excited to work with United Regional in this effort. Their ability to bring people to the table — community leaders, city officials, nonprofits, schools, and everyday residents — is what it takes to make lasting change in a community. We're excited to help United Regional turn that shared commitment into a concrete plan that helps people in Wichita Falls live longer, healthier lives." The Blue Zones team of experts will connect with community leaders and organizations to begin immediate work assessing the strengths, needs, and challenges that residents are facing today. Blue Zones will then create a transformation plan that, once implemented, can drive widespread improvements in well-being, reductions in healthcare costs, and improve economic vitality in the region.
Learn more and stay up to date by visiting www.bluezones.com/ignite-wichita-falls.