Promoting Seniors' Health With Home Care Aides

NCT ID: NCT03301116

Last Updated: 2025-06-27

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: COMPLETED
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 157 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2017-09-01
• Study Completion Date: 2022-12-07

Brief Summary

This study aims to test whether a safe physical activity program with a built-in motivational enhancement component, performed in a seated position, preserves the function and well-being of older home care clients.

Detailed Description

Regular physical activity benefits older adults physically and mentally. However, the availability and the evidence for physical activity programs that are safe and appropriate for home-bound older adults at risk for nursing home admission are limited. The current project aims to examine the effectiveness of a safe physical activity program, led by home care aides who regularly help hard-to-reach older home care clients with housekeeping and routine personal care services in the home. The primary aim is to test whether the safe physical activity program with a built-in motivational enhancement component, performed in a seated position, preserves the function and well-being of home care clients. The secondary aim is to understand for whom the program is efficacious, the extent to which the program can reach the target population, the extent to which participants drop out of the program, the extent to which program participants maintain the behavioral change introduced by the intervention, and what the program's cost-effectiveness is. Building on a pilot project that demonstrated the program's feasibility in a large home care program funded by the state and Medicaid, this randomized controlled trial will inform future expansion of the physical activity program into real-world home care settings.

Conditions

Muscle Weakness

Study Design

• Allocation Method: RANDOMIZED
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Primary Study Purpose: PREVENTION
• Blinding Strategy: SINGLE

Study Groups

Healthy Moves

Home care aides (HCAs) will be trained to deliver Healthy Moves for Aging Well (Healthy Moves), a gentle physical activity program, to their clients. On the first home care visit after the training, HCAs will introduce the program, assess their clients' readiness for the activity and have their clients set personally meaningful goals, and teach the three chair-bound moves. Home care clients will be asked to do the three moves every day. HCAs remind clients of their activity as part of their regular home care visits throughout the 4-month intervention period.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Healthy Moves for Aging Well (Healthy Moves)

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

A safe physical activity program which consists of a brief motivational enhancement and three movements to be performed in a seated position. The intervention will be delivered by home care aides for their clients.

Active Mind

Home care aides (HCAs) will be trained to deliver Active Mind for Aging Well (Active Mind), a gentle thinking activity program, to their clients. On the first home care visit after the training, HCAs will introduce the program, assess their clients' readiness for the activity and have their clients set personally meaningful goals, and teach the activity. Home care clients will be asked to do a word search puzzle every day. HCAs remind clients of their activity as part of their regular home care visits throughout the 4-month intervention period.

Group Type: ACTIVE_COMPARATOR

Active Mind for Aging Well (Active Mind)

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

A word puzzle program which consists of a brief motivational enhancement and word search activities. The intervention will be delivered by home care aides for their clients.

Interventions

Healthy Moves for Aging Well (Healthy Moves)

A safe physical activity program which consists of a brief motivational enhancement and three movements to be performed in a seated position. The intervention will be delivered by home care aides for their clients.

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Active Mind for Aging Well (Active Mind)

A word puzzle program which consists of a brief motivational enhancement and word search activities. The intervention will be delivered by home care aides for their clients.

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• English or Spanish-speaking older adults aged 60+
• Receiving Illinois Department on Aging Community Care Program In-Home service from the collaborating home care agency
• Able to sit in a chair independently for >=15 minutes (it is fine if the person needs help with transferring to a chair)
• Cognitive status sufficient to follow directions and respond to survey questions as determined by the Six-Item Screener (Callahan, et al., 2002) (the instrument used in the phone screening) and the Modified Mini-Mental State (3MS) Examination (the instrument used in the in-home screening)
• Willing to be assigned to either intervention program
• Willing to have the research team notify the primary care physician of the client's study participation

• English or Spanish-speaking home care aide caring for an older home care client eligible for the study
• Age 18 and older
• Willing to implement the intervention program routine with their eligible client(s) for the full 4 months
• Willing to be randomly assigned to either intervention program
• Intend to be a home care aide for the next 12 months

Exclusion Criteria

• Having a legal guardian appointed
• Bedridden or unable to sit in a chair independently
• Receiving hospice care or having a terminal diagnosis
• Self-reported inability to read large print books

HOME CARE AIDES

• Not having a home care client who participates in the study

• Minimum Eligible Age: 60 Years
• Maximum Eligible Age: 110 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Sponsors

National Institute on Aging (NIA)

NIH

Sponsor Role: collaborator

University of Illinois at Chicago

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Naoko Muramatsu

Associate Professor

Responsibility Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

Naoko Muramatsu, PhD

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

University of Illinois at Chicago

Locations

University of Illinois at Chicago

Chicago, Illinois, United States

Countries

United States

Other Identifiers

R01AG053675

Identifier Type: NIH

Identifier Source: secondary_id

View Link

2016-0689

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id