Lifestyle Matters
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Sheffield
Department Name: Health and Related Research
Abstract
Technical Summary
The research being proposed is a population based clinical and cost evaluation of an intervention which aims to assist older people to make positive changes to their lifestyle and by doing so avoid the decline associated with poor mental health and low quality of life. The intervention ?Lifestyle Matters? is recommended in NICE guidance but has not been robustly evaluated. It is delivered weekly to the same group of older people in a local community venue by facilitators who are trained using an existing resource and then supervised throughout. The intervention involves using a range of techniques to enable individuals to learn new activities and/or re-engage with neglected activities in a supportive atmosphere. The group intervention extends over four months and is supplemented by monthly individual sessions for each participant as described in the published manualised programme.
The research will involve recruiting people aged 65 years and over to the study from local communities in Bangor and Sheffield. Those who meet the study inclusion criteria will be randomised to either receive the intervention or to participate in data collection for the purposes of the study. The aim is to recruit 268 older people, with 134 being randomised to receive the intervention. All those recruited will be asked to complete a range of measures in questionnaire format at the outset, immediately following cessation of intervention delivery (4 months later) and once more 12 months after baseline measurement. They will all be asked to record their use of health and social care services. The primary study outcome is improved mental health. Secondary outcomes include overall quality of life, resilience and self efficacy, experience of loneliness and depressive symptoms and costs of involvement in the intervention compared with use of other existing services. Data will be analysed to determine whether the intervention has positive effect upon mental well being as well as the other factors mentioned above, and if there is a positive effect, to examine if it is maintained over time.
We also wish to explore the possibilities that this intervention might have for others with different needs and at various stages of the life course and will consult locally and nationally to identify the best populations to work with. We will then test the feasibility of Lifestyle Matters with the identified populations in each location by recruiting and delivering the programme and interviewing both facilitators and participants about their experiences.
The research will involve recruiting people aged 65 years and over to the study from local communities in Bangor and Sheffield. Those who meet the study inclusion criteria will be randomised to either receive the intervention or to participate in data collection for the purposes of the study. The aim is to recruit 268 older people, with 134 being randomised to receive the intervention. All those recruited will be asked to complete a range of measures in questionnaire format at the outset, immediately following cessation of intervention delivery (4 months later) and once more 12 months after baseline measurement. They will all be asked to record their use of health and social care services. The primary study outcome is improved mental health. Secondary outcomes include overall quality of life, resilience and self efficacy, experience of loneliness and depressive symptoms and costs of involvement in the intervention compared with use of other existing services. Data will be analysed to determine whether the intervention has positive effect upon mental well being as well as the other factors mentioned above, and if there is a positive effect, to examine if it is maintained over time.
We also wish to explore the possibilities that this intervention might have for others with different needs and at various stages of the life course and will consult locally and nationally to identify the best populations to work with. We will then test the feasibility of Lifestyle Matters with the identified populations in each location by recruiting and delivering the programme and interviewing both facilitators and participants about their experiences.
