NHS staff aim for healthier lifestyle by using Fit in 50

Luton and Dunstable NHS Trust has adopted a new initiative Fit in 50, to improve the health and wellbeing of their employees.
The breast screening team at Luton & Dunstable NHS Trust performing their regular exercisesThe breast screening team at Luton & Dunstable NHS Trust performing their regular exercises
The breast screening team at Luton & Dunstable NHS Trust performing their regular exercises

The therapies administration team, breast screening team and the risk governance and legal team at the Luton and Dunstable University Hospital are all using the Fit in 50 initiative.

The Fit in 50 booklet, co-designed by Dan Gunning and Chris Packham, contain a 14-day exercise and healthy eating plan, which aims to encourage employees to exercise regularly and improve nutritional habits throughout their working day.

Chris, who is a physiotherapy exercise instructor for the NHS, used his experiences within his role to inspire him to design the booklet. He said: “I have been working within the NHS for ten years. Over this time, I have seen a concerning decline in the wellbeing of both patients and staff.

“I wanted to design an initiative that provides an opportunity for everyone to improve their health and fitness.”

Health professions within the NHS are seeking new initiatives to improve the health and wellbeing of their workforce.

Jennie Jones, Occupational Health and Wellbeing Manager at the Luton and Dunstable hospital said: “Most staff will be very active in their day to day work activities, however we recognise that we have many individuals who are sat at a desk for many hours, so focused on their work that they forget to get up and move to stretch their limbs.

“This booklet gave me the perfect opportunity to remind staff of the importance in moving a bit more, and even more importantly staff reported as it being a good fun team building experience.”

Luton Borough Council have also adopted Fit in 50 for their employees.