Impact of a National Peer-Led Training Program to Increase Brief Physical Activity Advice Given to Patients by Health Care Professionals

Background: The benefits of physical activity for preventing and managing long-term health conditions are well established and health care professionals could promote physical activity to patients. The current study aims to evaluate the impact of the Clinical Champions Physical Activity Training Program. Methods: Health care professionals attend a one-off in-person training session delivered by a trained Clinical Champion. Attendees at the Clinical Champions Physical Activity Training Program were asked to complete a baseline survey prior to the training session and follow-up surveys 4 and 12 weeks posttraining. Results: A total of 5945 training attendees completed the baseline survey. A total of 1859 and 754 participants completed 4- and 12-week follow-up (31.3% and 12.7% response rate, respectively). Significant increases in confidence to deliver brief physical activity advice and knowledge of physical activity guidelines were reported at 12 weeks (P < .001). The perceived frequency of physical activity discussions with patients significantly increased (P < .001). Twelve weeks after training, fewer barriers in promoting physical activity were reported. Conclusions: The evaluation of the Clinical Champions Physical Activity Training Program demonstrated an increase in knowledge of physical activity guidelines, levels of confidence, and frequency of delivery of brief physical activity advice to patients. Further research is required to determine if this impact translates into changes to patients’ physical activity behavior.

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Mixed Methods Process Evaluation of a National Peer-Led Training Program to Increase Brief Advice on Physical Activity Given By Health Care Professionals

Journal of Physical Activity and Health ◽

10.1123/jpah.2021-0188 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-11

Author(s):

Maxine E. Whelan ◽

Liz Carlin ◽

Hayley Musson ◽

Emma J. Adams

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Health Care ◽

Training Program ◽

Process Evaluation ◽

Health Care Professionals ◽

Administrative Support ◽

Training Session ◽

Population Level ◽

Program Improvement ◽

Geographical Regions

Introduction: Health care professionals are well-positioned to encourage physical activity. The Clinical Champions Physical Activity Training Program (CCTP) aimed to increase population-level physical activity across England. This study aimed to (1) evaluate CCTP uptake and utilization; (2) explore CCTP fidelity, barriers, facilitators, and satisfaction; and (3) provide recommendations for program improvement. Methods: Physical Activity Clinical Champions were recruited and trained to deliver training to other health care professionals about physical activity. The Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, and Maintenance (RE-AIM) framework was used to conduct a process evaluation using data collected from CCTP training sessions delivered (often at hospitals and General Practitioner surgeries) between February and December 2018. Results: About 509 training sessions were delivered, with 89% of sessions delivered by doctor/physician and nurse Clinical Champions; 8917 health care professionals attended a training session. Sessions lasted on average 1 hour 28 minutes and core slide sets were used in 65% of sessions. Barriers related to arranging the sessions and time available to deliver sessions. Conclusion: The process evaluation demonstrated a national peer-led training program can reach all geographical regions of England; however, barriers need to be addressed. Recommendations include providing more administrative support to the Clinical Champions, improving communication and advertising to raise awareness of the CCTP, and standardizing training session duration and content.

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Physical Activity on Prescription in Routine Health Care: 1-Year Follow-Up of Patients with and without Counsellor Support

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph17165679 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 17 (16) ◽

pp. 5679

Author(s):

Pia Andersen ◽

Sara Holmberg ◽

Kristofer Årestedt ◽

Lena Lendahls ◽

Per Nilsen

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Health Care ◽

Health Care Professionals ◽

Routine Care ◽

Interquartile Range ◽

Activity Levels ◽

Everyday Activity ◽

Significant Difference ◽

One Year

The effectiveness of counsellor support in addition to physical activity on prescription (PAP) from health care professionals has rarely been evaluated. This observational follow-up study investigated differences in physical activity levels and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) one year after PAP regarding patients’ use of counsellor support in addition to PAP in routine care. The study was conducted in a Swedish health care region in which all patients receiving PAP from health care professionals were offered counsellor support. Data were collected from medical records and questionnaires (baseline and follow-up). Of the 400 study participants, 37% used counsellor support. The group of counsellor users attained a higher level of physical activity one year after receiving PAP compared to the group of non-users (p < 0.001). The level of physical activity was measured by a validated index (score 3–19) calculated from weekly everyday activity and exercise training. Comparison of the change in scores between baseline and follow-up showed a significant difference between the two groups, (p < 0.001). The median difference in the PAP + C group was 2.0 (interquartile range, 7.0) and 0.0. among non-users (interquartile range, 4.0). Significant differences in HRQoL were due to positive improvements among counsellor users, with the main improvement in general health. The conclusion is that patients using counsellor support after receiving PAP from health care professionals had higher physical activity and better HRQoL one year after compared with patients who did not use this support.

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Enhancing Physical Activity Guidelines: A Needs Survey of Adults With Spinal Cord Injury and Health Care Professionals

Adapted Physical Activity Quarterly ◽

10.1123/apaq.29.4.329 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 29 (4) ◽

pp. 329-345 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Brianne L. Foulon ◽

Valérie Lemay ◽

Victoria Ainsworth ◽

Kathleen A. Martin Ginis

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Health Care ◽

Spinal Cord ◽

Spinal Cord Injury ◽

Health Care Professionals ◽

Survey Questionnaire ◽

Physical Activity Guidelines ◽

Risks And Benefits ◽

Cord Injury

The purpose of this study was to determine preferences of people with spinal cord injury (SCI) and health care professionals (HCP) regarding the content and format of a SCI physical activity guide to support recently released SCI physical activity guidelines. Seventy-eight people with SCI and 80 HCP completed a survey questionnaire. Participants with SCI identified desired content items and their preferences for format. HCP rated the helpfulness of content items to prescribe physical activity. All content items were rated favorably by participants with SCI and useful by HCP. The risks and benefits of activity and inactivity, and strategies for becoming more active, were rated high by both samples. Photographs and separate information for those with paraplegia versus tetraplegia were strongly endorsed. These data were used to guide the development of an SCI physical activity guide to enhance the uptake of physical activity guidelines for people with SCI. The guide was publically released November 11, 2011.

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The impact of a continuing training program on the perceived improvement in quality of health care delivered by health care professionals

Evaluation and Program Planning ◽

10.1016/j.evalprogplan.2017.09.009 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 66 ◽

pp. 33-38 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

María Luisa Gracía-Pérez ◽

Marta Gil-Lacruz

Keyword(s):

Health Care ◽

Training Program ◽

Quality Of Health Care ◽

Health Care Professionals ◽

The Impact

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The provision of dietary and physical activity advice for men diagnosed with prostate cancer: a qualitative study of the experiences and views of health care professionals, patients and partners

Cancer Causes & Control ◽

10.1007/s10552-017-0861-7 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 28 (4) ◽

pp. 319-329 ◽

Cited By ~ 19

Author(s):

Eileen Sutton ◽

Lucy E. Hackshaw-McGeagh ◽

Jonathan Aning ◽

Amit Bahl ◽

Anthony Koupparis ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Prostate Cancer ◽

Health Care ◽

Qualitative Study ◽

Health Care Professionals ◽

Physical Activity Advice

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Research Priorities for Rare Neurological Diseases: A Representative View of Patient Representatives and Health Care Professionals From the European Reference Network for Rare Neurological Diseases

10.21203/rs.3.rs-93958/v1 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Annemarie Post ◽

Thomas Klockgether ◽

G. Bernhard Landwehrmeyer ◽

Massimo Pandolfo ◽

Astri Arnesen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Health Care ◽

Health Care Professionals ◽

Neurological Diseases ◽

Research Priorities ◽

Disease Mechanisms ◽

Research Theme ◽

Research Themes ◽

Patient Representatives ◽

The Impact

Abstract Background: Patient involvement in research increases the impact of research and the likelihood of adoption in clinical practice. A first step is to know which research themes are important for patients. We distributed a survey on research priorities to ERN-RND members, both patient representatives and health care professionals, asking them to prioritize five research themes for rare neurological diseases on a scale ranging from 1 (most important) to 5 (least important). A follow-up e-mail interview was conducted with patient representatives and professionals to assess potential reasons for differences in opinions between these two groups.Results: In total, 156 responses were analysed: 61 from professionals and 95 from patient representatives. They covered all ERN-RND disease groups and came from 20 different EU countries. Almost half of the respondents considered ‘Developing therapies and preventive strategies’ the most important research theme. In particular, patient representatives prioritized this theme more often than professionals, while professionals prioritized ‘Disease mechanisms and models’. Patient representatives indicated that therapies and prevention were of the utmost importance to them, because their lives are often heavily impacted by the disease and their main goal is to relief the burden of disease. Professionals indicated that investigating disease mechanisms will lead to more knowledge and is indispensable for finding new treatments.Conclusions: Patients and professionals have different opinions on which research theme should have priority. A qualitative follow-up shows that they respect each others’ view points. Different stakeholders involved in research should be aware of their differences in research theme priority. Explaining these differences to each other leads to more understanding, and could improve patient engagement in research.

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Geriatric syndromes and subsequent health-care utilization among older community dwellers in Stockholm

European Journal of Ageing ◽

10.1007/s10433-021-00600-2 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Jette Möller ◽

Christian Rausch ◽

Lucie Laflamme ◽

Yajun Liang

Keyword(s):

Health Care ◽

Health Care Utilization ◽

Cox Regression ◽

Baseline Survey ◽

Care Utilization ◽

Geriatric Syndromes ◽

Outpatient Visits ◽

The Impact ◽

Community Dwellers

AbstractLittle is known about the long-term effect of geriatric syndromes on health-care utilization. This study aims to determine the association between geriatric syndromes and health-care utilization during a four-year period among older community dwellers. Based on the Stockholm Public Health Cohort study, a total number of 6700 community dwellers aged ≥65 years were included. From a baseline survey in 2006, geriatric syndromes were defined as having at least one of the following: insomnia, functional decline, urinary incontinence, depressive symptoms and vision impairment. Health-care utilization was identified by linkages at individual level with register data with a four-year follow-up. Cox regression was performed to estimate the associations. Compared to those without geriatric syndromes, participants with any geriatric syndromes had a higher prevalence of frequent hospitalizations, long hospital stays, frequent outpatient visits and polypharmacy in each of the follow-up years. After controlling for covariates, having any geriatric syndromes was associated with higher levels of utilization of inpatient and outpatient care as well as polypharmacy. The association was stable over time, and the fully adjusted hazard ratio (95% confidence interval) remained stable in frequent hospitalizations (from 1.89 [1.31, 2.73] in year 1 to 1.70 [1.23, 2.35] in year 4), long hospital stay (from 1.75 [1.41, 2.16] to 1.49 [1.24, 1.78]), frequent outpatient visits (from 1.40 [1.26, 1.54] to 1.33 [1.22, 1.46]) and polypharmacy (from 1.63 [1.46, 1.83] to 1.53 [1.37, 1.71]). Having any geriatric syndromes is associated with higher levels of health-care utilization among older community dwellers, and the impact of geriatric syndromes is stable over a four-year period.

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