A Primary Care Nurse-Delivered Walking Intervention in Older Adults

Plos: Worldwide, people are becoming increasingly sedentary. They are sitting at desks instead of doing manual labor; they are driving to work instead of walking; and they are participating in fewer leisure time physical activities. But the human body needs regular exercise to stay healthy. Physical activity helps to maintain a healthy weight and prevents or delays heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and some cancers.


Moreover, physically active people feel better and live longer than physically inactive people. The World Health Organization recommends that adults should be active daily and should do at least 150 minutes of moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity (MVPA) every week in bouts that each last at least 10 minutes. Moderate-intensity physical activities (for example, brisk walking) require a moderate amount of effort and noticeably increase the heart rate; vigorous-intensity physical activities (for example, running) require a large amount of effort and cause rapid breathing and a substantial heart rate increase.

Why Was This Study Done?

When physical activity is objectively measured using an accelerometer (a movement monitor that is usually worn on the waist; unlike pedometers, which simply count the number of steps a person takes, accelerometers record both step-counts and the intensity of physical activity), fewer than 5% of older people achieve the recommended weekly levels of MVPA. These levels could be reached by taking regular brisk walks but how can older people be persuaded to make such walks part of their daily lives? In this cluster randomized controlled trial—the PACE (Pedometer Accelerometer Consultation Evaluation)-Lift trial—the researchers assess whether an intervention to increase walking comprising pedometer and accelerometer feedback combined with physical activity consultations provided by practice nurses can lead to sustained increases in physical activity in 60–75 year olds. Cluster randomized trials compare outcomes in groups of people (here, husbands and wives living in one household) assigned through the play of chance to receive a test or a control intervention.

What Did the Researchers Do and Find?

The researchers assigned 298 people from 250 households to receive the intervention or usual care and determined the participants’ physical activity at baseline, 3 months, and 12 months by asking them to wear an accelerometer for 7 days. Intervention group participants received four physical activity consultations with a primary care nurse over 3 months. At the first consultation, the nurse gave each participant a pedometer to measure step-counts, a physical activity diary in which to record their goals and progress, and the PACE-Lift patient handbook. At each consultation, the nurse used behavior change techniques (for example, goal setting) to encourage the participant to walk regularly, gave the participant visual feedback from their accelerometer readings, and devised a personal walking plan. Control group participants received normal care only from the practice. At 3 months and 12 months, both the average daily step-count and the weekly MVPA level had decreased from baseline in the control group but increased in the intervention group. At 3 months, compared to the control group, the average step-count in the intervention group was 1,037 steps/day higher and the MVPA in bouts of more than 10 minutes in the intervention group was 63 minutes/week higher. At 12 months, the corresponding differences were 609 steps/day and 40 minutes/week. There were no significant differences in adverse events (for example, pain), body fat, or other measured health-related outcomes between the groups.

What Do These Findings Mean?

These findings show that the complex intervention tested in the PACE-Lift trial increased both step-counts and objectively measured MPVA among 60–75 year olds for at least 12 months. Importantly, all the participants and practice nurses were positive and enthusiastic about the intervention. Moreover, the observed increase in physical activity is estimated to reduce the participants’ risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes by an estimated 5.5% and 9.1%, respectively. Further trials are needed to determine which aspects of the intervention were responsible for increasing physical activity, to determine whether the intervention’s effects will persist for longer than 12 months, and to test the intervention in socio-economically diverse populations (all the PACE-Lift participants came from an affluent, non-ethnically diverse area). However, these findings highlight the value of family practices providing older individuals with individualized support that incorporates objective assessment of physical activity to help them become more physically active.