Group exercise in long-term care facilities, alignment with World Health Organization recommendations: a...

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Public Health
• Exercise Science

Background:

• Maintaining functional status in institutionalized older adults is a significant challenge for long-term care (LTC) facilities.
• While exercise offers benefits, adherence to established guidelines remains low in this population.
• The World Health Organization (WHO) provides exercise recommendations for all age groups.

Purpose of the Study:

• To characterize exercise programs for older adults in LTC facilities.
• To assess healthcare professionals' knowledge and utilization of WHO exercise guidelines.
• To identify barriers to implementing WHO guidelines in LTC settings.

Main Methods:

• A national cross-sectional survey was conducted among professionals developing exercise programs for institutionalized older adults.
• The survey instrument was developed using a Delphi study and included sociodemographic data, exercise characteristics, and knowledge/limitation assessments.
• Descriptive statistics, including Pearson's chi-squared and independent t-tests, were employed for data analysis.

Main Results:

• A significant proportion of professionals (27.5%) were unaware of, and over half (52%) did not follow, WHO exercise guidelines.
• Weekly frequencies for strength (30%) and aerobic (51%) exercises were low.
• Professionals cited lack of time and large group sizes as primary limitations to guideline implementation.

Conclusions:

• While WHO exercise guidelines are known to many LTC professionals, practical implementation faces significant challenges.
• Barriers such as time constraints and group management impede the effective application of recommended exercise protocols.
• Improving exercise program delivery in LTC requires addressing these identified limitations.