Team Up 4 Health, a first-of-its-kind community health and wellness program, with nonprofit partners Microclinic International (MCI), Humana and the local Bell County Health Department is aimed at curbing preventable chronic diseases.

Kentucky ranks among the top 10 states with the highest prevalence of diabetes, obesity and high blood pressure. Bell County has an obesity rate of 35.9 percent, a diagnosed diabetes prevalence of 13.9 percent and a hypertension rate of 35.2 percent.

The goal: To make a measurable, long-term impact on people’s health and well-being and to curb chronic diseases. The strategy was built on a research-based finding which revealed that systemic effects of poor health can be mitigated when small groups of people are empowered to influence each other and their community to adopt healthy behaviors.

As a result Team Up 4 Health focused on putting micro-support systems of peers in place along with nutritional and physical fitness education, coaching and resources. The local medical community was engaged to address chronic medical conditions and the stage was set for transformation.

97 percent of participants improved on at least one health scale and 90 percent improved on more than one scale (blood pressure, decreased weight, BMI, glucose metric).

The two-year pilot was conducted in collaboration with Bell County, Kentucky, NGO partner Microclinic International, Humana and the local health department.

First, small groups of friends and family with the desire for improved health were identified, and screened for risk factors (BMI, cholesterol, blood glucose levels and blood pressure). At-risk individuals were the first enrollees. These participants learned and shared practical behavior changes and received periodic screenings to monitor progress.

Participants made sustainable lifestyle changes and progress to manage and prevent chronic disease. The Bell County Health Department lead this effort with oversight from qualified local community members working in the department.

TeamUp4Health.org was created to serve as the hub for all program information, including pictures, articles in the news and blog posts written by Humana, MCI and program managers and participants. A Facebook page, maintained by the Bell County Health Department, and a program media trailer were also developed.

Our participants:

97% improved on at least one health scale; 47% above pilot goals.

90% improved on more than one scale (blood pressure, decreased weight, BMI, glucose metric);

Obese participants lost 10.2 pounds on average.

82% reported increasing their physical activity.

49% reported eating healthier by program end.

81% of obese participants who lost weight kept it off.

74% reported increasing their physical activity reported maintaining their behavior.

72% reported maintaining overall healthier eating habits.

By the numbers:

2 fitness parks

1 community organic garden

1 pavilion

$2 million grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to continue work in the region awarded to MCI as a result of the program’s success.

7 Key media placements Stanford Social Innovation Review, Lexington Herald Leader, Middlesboro Daily News, KET-TV documentary “Well Fed,” KYForward, The Health Care Blog and on Huffington Post .