Building Health Empowerment Zones
Project Description:
The longitudinal study uses a community-based participatory research model to improve access to the built environment for persons wtih mobility disability through a multilevel intervention involving partnerships between the University of Illinois at Chicago, the Illinois Americans with Disabilities Project, the Chicago-based American Planning Association, and the Urban Transportation Planning Center at the University of Illinois at Chicago. The study wil be conducted in two phases. The first phase will involve development of a health emplowerment zone that includes training initiatives with fitness and recreation facilities, grocery stories, the regional transportation authority, and local planning and zoning boards. The intervention will consist of (1)disability awareness and accessiblity training to fitness facility, grocery store and mass transit staff; (2)providing barrier removal recommendations to store and facility owners; (3)involvement with local planning boards to recommend strategies for improving community accessibility, and (4)a health marketing campaign that includes financial incentives in the form of pre-purchased good and services for businesses that increase accessibility and increase community awareness of accessibility and helath promotion for people with disabilities. Phase 2 involves a Ticket to Health Campaign that provides incentives for intervention participants to explore the modified build environment by providing them with vouchers for prepaid good and services from stores and facilities within the health empowerment zone that have removed barriers. Treatment group participant will receive pre-paid tickets redeemable for good and services from participating fitness facilitites and food stores over a four month period. The tickets will be redeemable only by the participatns and only for specific (eg health promoting) goods and services. Health behavior data will be recorded both pre and post intervention. The primary outcome fo this demonstration project is a model program for improving access to the built environment resulting in improved health and reducation of secondary condistion among people with mobility disabilities.
Core Function(s):
Training Trainees, Performing Technical Assistance and/or Training, Performing Research or Evaluation, Developing & Disseminating Information
Area of Emphasis
Health-Related Activities, Recreation-Related Activities
Target Audience:
Adults with Disabilities, Legislators/Policy Makers, General Public
Unserved or Under-served Populations:
Racial or Ethnic Minorities, Disadvantaged Circumstances, Limited English, Geographic Areas, Empowerment Zone
Primary Target Audience Geographic Descriptor:
Single-County
COVID-19 Related Data:
N/A
