Creating African-American Wellness Through Exercise
| Status: | Terminated |
|---|---|
| Conditions: | Depression |
| Therapuetic Areas: | Psychiatry / Psychology |
| Healthy: | No |
| Age Range: | 18 - Any |
| Updated: | 4/21/2016 |
| Start Date: | June 2009 |
| End Date: | May 2013 |
Creating African-American Wellness Through Exercise: Community Driven Strategies to Improve Health
The purpose of this study is to pilot-test a culturally-tailored, community-based
educational program for African-Americans, focusing on how to use exercise and other
self-management strategies to reduce depressive symptoms and improve health. This study will
explore what type of additional support would encourage depressed African-Americans to
exercise regularly. The investigators hypothesize that participants will report greater
frequency of exercise and lower depression scores at the end of the program than they did at
baseline. However, this study is not adequately powered to test this hypothesis - the main
goal is to assess feasibility, acceptability and satisfaction of the pilot intervention.
educational program for African-Americans, focusing on how to use exercise and other
self-management strategies to reduce depressive symptoms and improve health. This study will
explore what type of additional support would encourage depressed African-Americans to
exercise regularly. The investigators hypothesize that participants will report greater
frequency of exercise and lower depression scores at the end of the program than they did at
baseline. However, this study is not adequately powered to test this hypothesis - the main
goal is to assess feasibility, acceptability and satisfaction of the pilot intervention.
Several studies have documented the effectiveness of exercise as a treatment for depression.
However, these studies have used supervised exercise in medical school or university
environments and have included mostly middle-class White populations. Little is known
regarding how to translate these findings to real world settings or to minority populations.
Exercise may be a particularly beneficial option for African-Americans suffering from
depression. African-Americans face significant disparities in depression care. At least a
part of these disparities are due to lack of trust in the healthcare system and negative
attitudes toward antidepressants. Our goal is to pilot-test a culturally-tailored,
community-based exercise support program for depressed African-Americans. We will recruit
participants who screened positive for moderate depressive symptoms when they enrolled in
the African-American Health Coalition's Free Exercise Card Program, but who are exercising
less than 3 times per week. They will participate in a 6-week educational self-care group
focusing on how to use exercise and other self-help tools to reduce depressive symptoms.
Participants will be encouraged to create action plans regarding exercise and other healthy
lifestyle changes. Groups will also provide culturally-tailored information about depression
therapies, such as antidepressants and psychotherapy, and discuss strategies for obtaining
quality health care.
However, these studies have used supervised exercise in medical school or university
environments and have included mostly middle-class White populations. Little is known
regarding how to translate these findings to real world settings or to minority populations.
Exercise may be a particularly beneficial option for African-Americans suffering from
depression. African-Americans face significant disparities in depression care. At least a
part of these disparities are due to lack of trust in the healthcare system and negative
attitudes toward antidepressants. Our goal is to pilot-test a culturally-tailored,
community-based exercise support program for depressed African-Americans. We will recruit
participants who screened positive for moderate depressive symptoms when they enrolled in
the African-American Health Coalition's Free Exercise Card Program, but who are exercising
less than 3 times per week. They will participate in a 6-week educational self-care group
focusing on how to use exercise and other self-help tools to reduce depressive symptoms.
Participants will be encouraged to create action plans regarding exercise and other healthy
lifestyle changes. Groups will also provide culturally-tailored information about depression
therapies, such as antidepressants and psychotherapy, and discuss strategies for obtaining
quality health care.
Inclusion Criteria:
- 18 years of age
- African-American or of African-American descent
- Currently participating in the African-American Health Coalition Free Exercise-Card
Program
- Experiencing moderate depressive symptoms, as indicated by a score of 10-20 on the
Depression Scale of the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9.
- Exercising less than three times per week (for a minimum of 30 minutes per session)
over the past month
Exclusion Criteria:
- Actively suicidal
- If a health care provider, AAHC staff member, or an investigator feel that
participation in the program may endanger the participant's health or safety.
- Known mental or cognitive impairments
- Known condition that precludes their ability to feasibly participate in a support
group session.
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