CHALLENGES IN IMPLEMENTING A 1 HOUR WEEKLY WALK ACTIVITY AND ASSESSING SELF-ESTEEM WITHIN RESIDENTIAL PSYCHIATRIC...

Patients with psychotic disorders often have low levels of physical activity, and there's limited data on implementing exercise programs and systematically evaluating physical health among inpatients. This study, conducted in a closed psychosis unit, aimed to explore the feasibility of a 1-hour weekly walk activity, alongside assessing self-esteem.

From February 7 to July 11, 2025, patients at the Gaudi unit in Mons, Belgium, specializing in psychotic disorder care, were offered participation in a weekly supervised walk. Out of 64 evaluated inpatients, eligible individuals could choose between a 3 km or 5 km circuit. The study also planned to assess self-esteem using the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES) and to conduct qualitative analysis upon admission.

Over 24 weeks, the average walk participation rate was 59.86% (255 out of 426 possible participations). Most preferred the 3 km circuit (75.69%), while fewer chose the 5 km (14.9%) or the 8 km combination (9.41%). However, comprehensive assessments (RSES, qualitative evaluation) were only offered to 12 of the 64 patients. Only 6 completed the qualitative evaluation, and 10 completed the RSES. This low assessment completion rate suggests the evaluations might be too challenging for this population.

Implementing a weekly walk activity in a closed psychosis unit is feasible. Nevertheless, integrating a study protocol for comprehensive physical and psychological assessments proved challenging. Future projects would require adapting assessment methods to be more realistic for this setting.