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We Walk 4 Health

Background

  • For many different reasons, people with I/DD (intellectual and developmental disabilities) seem to be at higher risk of health issues in the United States (especially chronic health conditions)
  • Health behavior intervention programs are needed to target the higher risk health behaviors that are more correlated with the I/DD population, in order to improve long term health outcomes
  • Walking is an easy and low-cost behavior to add to one’s lifestyle that is accessible to many people with I/DD, and is the most common exercise behavior with this community. Thus, the design of the health intervention program that revolves around walking

(Hsieh et al. 2020)

Methods

Randomized controlled trial

    • This study will use a two-arm design (two parts)
    • There is an everyday activity group (the control group) and a walking group

Timeline

    • 3 phrases: protocol development (from 1-9 months), intervention (from 10-28 months) and follow up (29-36 months)

Where will study/project being conducted?

    • In and with community-based organizations around Chicago that provide supports for I/DD; in each participant’s daily life
    • (Mixed methods): quantitative and qualitative methods (such as Actigraph, steps walked, focus groups, interviews)

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Odile Carroll

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Key Findings

    • Right now, the project is in the process of active recruitment and fine tuning the protocol development.
    • There have been challenges with the recruitment process (heavy favor of in-person recruitment), specifically gathering enough participants, and adjusting the length of the initial assessment for each potential participant, the use of cell phones, and the use of the Actigraph to accurately record data
    • The research team has not yet seen activity in the Fitbit community (the social component of the intervention)
    • For the few participants who have been recruited, there has been a consistent meeting of daily step goals
    • The project continues to improve the accessibility of the language in recruitment materials, interviews, text messages and questionnaires
    • The development of the advisory board for the project is well under way, and diversity of the group has been a priority

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Recommendations and Implications

  • The results of this study will demonstrate whether or not this socially-oriented health intervention program, We Walk 4 Health, has an impact on improving health outcomes for the participants with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
  • Ultimately, one of the more significant recommendations I have following this experience is to continue to prioritize the accessibility of materials (such as the text messages sent to participants throughout the study, that I evaluated and edited recently) for the community that is participating in the research study
    • Utilizing resources such as: https://www.webfx.com/tools/read-able/
  • The implications of this research will continue to shed light on the feasibility of this specific walking program that is oriented toward social support with intellectually and developmentally disabled adults, specifically whether it will lead to increased physical activity and decreased sedentary time.

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