FUNDING
The Netherlands Organisation for Health Research and Development (ZonMw)
PROJECT PARTNERS
University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG)
Huis voor de Sport Groningen
Gemeente Groningen
Lifelines
Hanze Hogeschool Groningen
Genomics Coordination Center UMCG
EPIC UMCG
Kenniscentrum Sport
BACKGROUND
Although prescription of physical activity in clinical care has been advocated worldwide through the ‘exercise is medicine’ (E=M) paradigm. E=M currently has no position in general routine hospital care, which is hypothesized to be due to attitudinal and practical barriers to implementation. This study aims to create E=M implementation strategies to reduce practical barriers to enforcing E=M in hospital care.
OBJECTIVES
Firstly, this project will perform a mixed methods study (questionnaire and interviews) to investigate the current implementation status of E=M in clinical care as well as its facilitators and barriers to implementation among clinicians and hospital managers. In the second phase of the project, strategies will be developed in order to facilitate the implementation of E=M in clinical care. One of the strategies is the development of an E=M tool that will facilitate prescription of individually tailored E=M advice based on the combination of individual patient characteristics and data from earlier research. In the final stage of the project, the feasibility of the developed E=M implementation strategies will be investigated with a process evaluation. A pilot-study will, therefore, integrate the E=M implementation strategies in routine care in at least four clinical departments in two Dutch university hospitals.