Promoting Physical Activity Among Older Women Living in Socio-economically Disadvantaged Areas

Queen's University Belfast

Status: Completed

Conditions: Physical Activity; Health Behaviour

Treatments: Behavioral: Intervention

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT02880449

16.38

Details and patient eligibility

About

The aim of the project is pilot an intervention to promote physical activity (PA) among older women.

Participants will be women aged ≥50 years attending an identified community centre situated in a socioeconomically deprived area of Belfast. The intervention consists of education, social support and information on local opportunities for physical activity (PA), based on Social Practice Theory. A stepped wedge design shall be used. The intervention was developed using findings from a literature review, systematic review and interviews with stakeholders. Outcome measures are accelerometer data, self-reported PA, a mental health questionnaire and qualitative interviews.

Full description

Participants will be recruited from previously established older women's community groups. The intervention will utilize existing weekly community group sessions. A stepped wedge design, with a delayed intervention, shall be used to allow a randomised controlled trial to be conducted and to control for seasonal weather effects on PA levels. Two community groups from each centre shall be identified. One group from each centre shall receive the intervention from week one for 6 weeks; the second group shall receive the control condition from week one for 6 weeks and then receive the intervention at week 7 for 6 weeks. The intervention will consist of three educational sessions, encouragement to enlist the support of a partner or 'buddy' (e.g. a spouse, partner or friend), an information pack (containing information on the local area, walking routes, points of interest) and the option of weekly telephone contact. At each weekly meeting, participants will be given the opportunity to discuss their progress and share feedback with the rest of the group to gain peer social support. The intervention was developed using findings from a literature review, systematic review and interviews with stakeholders. The intervention is underpinned by constructs from the Social Practice Theory, a model that facilities behaviour change through the three elements of: materials (information on the local area, telephone calls, interactive group sessions), meanings (benefits of increasing PA, improving physical health and mental well-being) and competencies (encouragement to seek social support, knowledge of how to increase PA, knowledge of the local area).

Enrollment: 40 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 50+ years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Females
• Aged over 50 years
• Member of women's community centres in an area of socioeconomic deprivation

Exclusion criteria

Trial design

Primary purpose: Prevention

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

---

40 participants in 2 patient groups

Intervention

Experimental group

Description:

The intervention will be conducted in pre-existing older women's groups based in community centres. The intervention will consist of three educational sessions, encouragement to enlist the support of a partner or 'buddy' (e.g. a spouse, partner or friend), an information pack (containing information on the local area, walking routes, points of interest) and the option of weekly telephone contact. Participants will be given the opportunity to discuss their progress and share feedback with the rest of the group at weekly meetings.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Intervention

Control

No Intervention group

Description:

Due to the stepped wedge design of the study, one group in each centre will not receive the intervention procedure detailed above until week seven. The control groups shall be given information about the study at baseline and informed that they will receive the intervention 6 weeks later.