‘The UPMC Big Walk’ Set for June 15 at Noon

Thousands of Employees Expected to Participate at Multiple Sites

PITTSBURGH, June 15, 2011 – UPMC employees throughout western Pennsylvania will participate in “The UPMC Big Walk,” to promote increased physical activity in the region.

“The UPMC Big Walk” is scheduled for June 15, 2011, at Noon, at all UPMC sites, including UPMC’s corporate headquarters, located in the U.S. Steel Tower, and UPMC Health Plan, located in Chatman Center, Downtown. The walk will kick off a four-week “Let’s Get Active!” campaign for UPMC employees, which encourages employees to take at least a one-mile walk or do any other equivalent aerobic exercise on five or more days a week for four weeks. 

The mile walk also is intended to encourage people throughout Pittsburgh to become more active and to incorporate activity into their daily routines.

“Becoming active is a primary factor in wellness,” said Greg Peaslee, vice president, Chief Human Resources and Administrative Services Officer, UPMC. “We hope that an event like this will help get people interested in fun activities such as walking and they’ll continue to find ways to stay active.”

An estimated 1,500 UPMC employees are expected to walk a one-mile route Downtown on June 15.  UPMC Health Plan employees will participate in a walk that starts at the company’s headquarters in Chatham Center, Uptown.

UPMC employees who participate in Let’s Get Active! will see their efforts translate into money for the Best of the Batch Foundation, a local charity established by Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Charlie Batch, which offers programs that directly impact the youth of disadvantaged communities throughout the country. For each mile the employees walk during the campaign, UPMC will donate 15 cents, up to a maximum of $10,000. 

The UPMC Big Walk is an America on the Move (AOM) in Pittsburgh event. AOM is a non-profit organization dedicated to improving the health and quality of life by promoting healthful eating and active living among individuals, families, communities and society. John Jakicic, Ph.D., director of America on the Move in Pittsburgh, will be at the U.S. Steel Tower to start the walkers on their journey.

Walking routes near UPMC facilities in other parts of Pennsylvania have been developed so that employees can participate at those sites as well. Potentially, 10,000 to 20,000 employees could collectively participate in the UPMC Big Walk at the various sites.

About UPMC

UPMC is a $9 billion global health enterprise with more than 50,000 employees headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pa., and is transforming health care by integrating more than 20 hospitals, 400 doctors’ offices and outpatient sites, a health insurance services division, and international and commercial services. Affiliated with the University of Pittsburgh Schools of the Health Sciences, UPMC is redefining health care by using innovative science, technology, and medicine to invent new models of accountable, cost-efficient, and patient-centered care. For more information on how UPMC is taking medicine from where it is to where it needs to be, go to www.UPMC.com.