The effects of a long-term care walking program on balance, falls and well-being

Simple item page
dc.contributor.authorDal Bello-Haas, Vanina PM
dc.contributor.authorThorpe, Lilian U
dc.contributor.authorLix, Lisa M
dc.contributor.authorScudds, Rhonda
dc.contributor.authorHadjistavropoulos, Thomas
dc.date.accessioned2013-02-12T08:03:24Z
dc.date.available2013-02-12T08:03:24Z
dc.date.issued2012-12-18
dc.date.updated2013-02-12T08:03:24Z
dc.description.abstractAbstract Background The effects of a regular and graduated walking program as a stand-alone intervention for individuals in long-term care are unclear. Exercise and fall prevention programs typically studied in long-term care settings tend to involve more than one exercise mode, such as a combination of balance, aerobic, strengthening, and flexibility exercises; and, measures do not always include mental health symptoms and behaviors, although these may be of even greater significance than physical outcomes. Methods/design We are randomly assigning residents of long-term care facilities into one of three intervention groups: (1) Usual Care Group - individuals receive care as usual within their long-term care unit; (2) Interpersonal Interaction Group - individuals receive a comparable amount of one-on-one stationary interpersonal interaction time with study personnel administering the walking program; and, (3) Walking Program Group – individuals participate in a supervised, progressive walking program five days per week, for up to half an hour per day. Assessments completed at baseline, 2 and 4 months during intervention, and 2 and 4 months post-intervention include: gait parameters using the GAITRite® computerized system, grip strength, the Berg Balance Scale, the Senior Fitness Test, the Older Adult Resource Services Physical Activities of Daily Living, the Geriatric Depression Scale Short Form, the Cornell Scale for Depression in Dementia, the Revised Memory and Behavior Problems Checklist, the Short Portable Mental Status Questionnaire, the Coloured Analogue Scale, pain assessment scales, and the number and nature of falls. Sophisticated data analytic procedures taking into account both the longitudinal nature of the data and the potential for missing data points due to attrition, will be employed. Discussion Residents in long-term care have a very high number of comorbidities including physical, mental health, and cognitive. The presence of dementia in particular makes standardized research protocols difficult to follow, and staff shortages, along with inconsistencies related to shift changes may impact on the accuracy of caregiver-rated assessment scales. Practical challenges to data collection validity and maintenance of inter-rater reliability due to the large number of research staff required to implement the interventions at multiple sites are also posed. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01277809
dc.description.versionPeer Reviewed
dc.identifier.citationBMC Geriatrics. 2012 Dec 18;12(1):76
dc.identifier.doihttp://dx.doi.org/10.1186/1471-2318-12-76
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/1993/16591
dc.language.rfc3066en
dc.rightsopen accessen_US
dc.rights.holderVanina PM Dal Bello-Haas et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.
dc.titleThe effects of a long-term care walking program on balance, falls and well-being
dc.typeJournal Article
Files
Original bundle
Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
Thumbnail Image
Name:
1471-2318-12-76.xml
Size:
62.17 KB
Format:
Extensible Markup Language
Description:
Download
Thumbnail Image
Name:
1471-2318-12-76.pdf
Size:
169.88 KB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Description:
Download
License bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Thumbnail Image
Name:
license.txt
Size:
1.71 KB
Format:
Item-specific license agreed to upon submission
Description:
Download
Collections
University of Manitoba Scholarship
Rady Faculty of Health Sciences Scholarly Works