Active Women over 50 online information and support to promote physical activity behaviour change: study protocol for a pilot trial

Geraldine Wallbank; Catherine Sherrington; Leanne Hassett; Dominika Kwasnicka; Josephine Y Chau; Fiona Martin; Philayrath Phongsavan; Anne Grunseit; Colleen Canning; Marian Baird; Roberta Shepherd; Anne Tiedemann

doi:10.1186/s40814-020-00627-9

Active Women over 50 online information and support to promote physical activity behaviour change: study protocol for a pilot trial

Pilot Feasibility Stud. 2020 Jun 27:6:91. doi: 10.1186/s40814-020-00627-9. eCollection 2020.

Authors

Geraldine Wallbank¹, Catherine Sherrington¹, Leanne Hassett^{1

2}, Dominika Kwasnicka^{3

4

5}, Josephine Y Chau^{6

7}, Fiona Martin⁸, Philayrath Phongsavan⁷, Anne Grunseit⁷, Colleen Canning², Marian Baird⁹, Roberta Shepherd², Anne Tiedemann¹

Affiliations

¹ Institute for Musculoskeletal Health, School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney and Sydney Local Health District, PO Box M179, Missenden Road, Camperdown, 2050 Australia.
² Discipline of Physiotherapy, Sydney School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, PO Box 170, Lidcombe, NSW 1825 Australia.
³ Faculty of Health Sciences, School of Public Health, Curtin University, GPO Box U1987, Perth, WA 6845 Australia.
⁴ SWPS University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Aleksandra Ostrowskiego 30b, 50-505 Wrocław, Poland.
⁵ Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, University of Melbourne, 333 Exhibition Street, Melbourne, 3000 Australia.
⁶ Department of Health Systems and Population, Macquarie University, 75 Talavera Road, North Ryde, NSW 2109 Australia.
⁷ Charles Perkins Centre, Sydney School of Public Health, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW 2006 Australia.
⁸ Department of Media and Communications, Faculty of Arts and Social Science, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW 2006 Australia.
⁹ Discipline of Work and Organisational Studies, Sydney Business School, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW 2006 Australia.

Abstract

Background: Physical activity has many physical and mental health benefits and can delay the development of disability in older age. However, uptake of this health behaviour is sub-optimal in women in their middle and older age. This trial aims to establish the acceptability and feasibility of the Active Women over 50 programme involving online information, telephone health coaching and email or SMS support to promote physical activity behaviour change among women aged 50 years and over.

Methods: Sixty community-dwelling women who are insufficiently active according to national guidelines, will be recruited and randomised to 1) receive the Active Women over 50 programme or 2) a wait-list control. Active Women over 50 is a 3-month physical activity programme guided by behaviour change science, providing access to a website, one telephone-delivered health coaching session from a physiotherapist and 8 email or 24 SMS messages. The primary outcome is the proportion of participants at 3 months post-randomisation who would recommend participation in the programme to another person like themselves. Secondary outcomes are feasibility measures: rates of recruitment, retention, completeness of outcome data and uptake of telephone support; and intervention impact measures: accelerometer-assessed average steps/day, proportion of participants meeting national guidelines on moderate to vigorous physical activity; and questionnaire-assessed quality of life, exercise perceptions, mood, physical functioning and self-reported physical activity. Intervention participants will also complete a follow-up survey to assess impressions of the intervention and adoption of strategies for physical activity participation. Data will be analysed descriptively to guide the design of a larger trial. Between-group differences in secondary outcomes will be used to estimate effect sizes for sample size calculations for a fully powered randomised controlled trial.

Discussion: This feasibility pilot trial of an efficient eHealth and health coaching intervention guided by user input and behaviour change theory, will inform future interventions to address low physical activity participation among an under-active group at risk of future disability.

Trial registration: ANZCTR, ACTRN12619000490178, registered 26 March 2019.

Keywords: Behaviour change; Exercise; Feasibility; Health coaching; Physical activity; Pilot trial; Study protocol; Website; eHealth.