Evaluation of the impact of the complex intervention ‘10,000 Steps Duesseldorf’: Replication study

BACKGROUND: The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends 150-300 minutes of moderate physical activity (PA) per week (approximately 7,000-10,000 steps/day). In Germany, fewer than half of all adults achieve this goal. This highlights the need for population-based intervention approaches to promote regular daily PA. The aims of this replication study are to adapt, implement and evaluate a community-based complex PA intervention originally developed and successfully implemented in Belgium. The following research questions are investigated: 1. Is the intervention ‘10,000 Steps Ghent’ adaptable and transferrable to the German context? 2. Is the intervention ‘10,000 Steps Duesseldorf’ effective for the promotion of PA among residents of city districts selected for the study compared to city districts of a control city? METHODS: The intervention includes components at different intervention levels (i.e., individual level: website; organizational level: promotion of PA e.g., in companies, senior citizens’ associations; community level: media campaign, environmental changes, e.g., signage in parks). To investigate the effects of the intervention, PA-levels were assessed via telephone interviews and pedometers in two representative samples of adults aged 25-75 years in the cities of Duesseldorf (intervention) and Wuppertal (control) at baseline (April 2021 - March 2022). The one-year follow-up will start in May 2023. RESULTS: 376 participants in the intervention and 253 in the control city districts completed baseline (60% female, 32% wore accelerometers in addition to the pedometers). First study results will be presented at the annual European Public Health Conference after the trial is completed. CONCLUSIONS: To our knowledge, this study is the first research project aiming to replicate the effects of a complex PA intervention successfully implemented in another European country. KEY MESSAGES: • Results regarding the adaptation and transferability of a complex PA intervention originally developed and implemented in Belgium will be presented. • Results regarding the impact of the community-based complex intervention ‘10,000 Steps Duesseldorf’ on residents’ PA levels will be shown.