Enhancing Urban Health Through a Community of Practice to Promote Active Lifestyle in a Population with Chronic Diseases: The +ACTIU Project

Urban environments play an important influence in influencing healthy lifestyles and reducing sedentary behaviour (SB), particularly as facilitators of physical activity (PA). Urban spaces often do not support healthy lifestyles. A Community of Practice (CoP) could be a valuable strategy for co-designing proposals to enhance healthy and active urban environments. We aimed to develop strategies through a CoP to promote PA and reduce SB in the urban setting of a multicultural population based in the Barcelona Metropolitan Area, with a particular focus on people with chronic diseases. A three-session CoP involving 25 participants (community members with chronic conditions, health professionals, urban planners, and local authorities) was implemented as a participatory research approach to identify barriers and facilitators to PA and co-design feasible urban improvement proposals. Ethical approval was obtained from Bellvitge University Hospital’s Ethics Committee. Participants provided informed consent and image release forms. Participants highlighted the importance of accessible, adaptable, and interconnected urban spaces to address barriers and leverage facilitators to PA. Proposed interventions targeted four selected areas of the neighbourhood and included expanding shaded areas, creating pedestrian-friendly routes and enhancing green spaces. This study highlights the effectiveness of a CoP in identifying and addressing barriers to PA within urban environments for people with chronic diseases. Findings emphasise the impact of neighbourhood design and accessibility on reducing SB and promoting active lifestyles. The participatory approach offers a replicable model for other urban settings aiming to foster health, although its qualitative and local nature limits generalisability.