Implementation of Physical Activity Interventions in Rural, Remote, and Northern Communities: A Scoping Review

Compared with urban centers, rural, remote, and northern communities face substantial health inequities and increased rates of noncommunicable disease fuelled, in part, by decreased participation in physical activity. Understanding how the unique sociocultural and environmental factors in rural, remote, and northern communities contribute to implementation of physical activity interventions can help guide health promotion policy and practice. A scoping review was conducted to map literature describing the implementation of physical activity interventions in rural, remote, and/or northern communities. Databases MEDLINE, PsycINFO, EMBASE, CINAHL, and SPORTDiscus were searched using a predetermined search strategy. Outcomes of interest included community demographics, program characteristics, intervention results, measures of implementation, and facilitators or barriers to implementation. A total of 1672 articles were identified from a search of databases, and 8 from a targeted hand search. After screening based on inclusion and exclusion criteria, 12 articles were summarized in a narrative review. Prominent barriers to physical activity program implementation included transportation, lack of infrastructure, sociocultural factors, and weather. Facilitators of program success included flexibility and creativity on the part of the implementation team, leveraging community relationships, and shared resources. Few papers reported on traditional implementation outcomes such as fidelity, dose, and quality. There is a lack of rigorous implementation evaluations of physical activity interventions delivered in rural, remote, or northern communities. Positive aspects of rural life, such as social cohesion and willingness to share resources, appear to contribute to successful program implementation.