Social Prescription for Loneliness in Community-based Group Exercise Classes for People With Parkinson Disease
Colorado State University
Summary
Loneliness is an epidemic that the U.S. Surgeon General implored must be addressed by society as a whole. Increased loneliness (i.e., distressing feelings of isolation) in people with Parkinson's disease (PD) has a pervasive impact and is associated with worsened motor and non-motor symptoms, and quality of life. The investigators expect that individuals participating socially in the community would experience less loneliness. However, for individuals with PD participating in community-based group exercise programs, the investigators have found that over one third still report being lonely. Therefore, an evidence-based program needs to be added to address a significant problem of loneliness for people with PD-and occupational therapy is the leading discipline to add the intervention because social participation is one of eight occupations that an occupational therapist is focused on optimizing. The chief executive officer at the Parkinson Association of the Rockies (PAR), members of the Colorado State University Occupational Therapy Department, and members of the University of Colorado's Parkinson's Exercise Research Consortium have teamed up to address pervasive loneliness. Social prescription is a prime evidence-based intervention to add to existing PD community-based exercise classes because it has been shown to reduce loneliness. For this project, the investigators detect participants in the 'lonely' range through a standardized assessment. The investigators will work with PAR staff who will refer individuals identifying as 'lonely' to an occupational therapist, who will complete an individualized occupational profile and write the appropriate social prescription from 11 different interventions (examples include: intergenerational intervention, animal companions, physical activity, occupational therapy) from established community resources recommended for social prescription. The proposed project is designed with three primary goals: (1) determine the reach of the social prescription program, (2) evaluate the effectiveness of the program at one site, and (3) determine implementation strategies for scalability.
Description
Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative condition with no known cure. Current evidence-based practice focuses on slowing disease progression, reducing negative impacts of motor and non-motor symptoms, and improving quality of life. While approaches such as exercise, medications, and surgery are used to reduce impacts of PD symptoms, there is a gap in how to address loneliness, which is a significant factor associated with poor quality of life for people with PD. Loneliness is a vast problem in the United States, the Surgeon General released a 2023 report imploring a societal focus on a…
Eligibility
- Age range
- 18+ years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- No
Inclusion Criteria: * At least 18 years old * Have a diagnosis of Parkinson Disease * Have participated in at least one exercise class or support group in the last year * Scored ≥5/9 on the UCLA 3-item Loneliness Scale during pre-screening * Agree to participate in a 6-month program including a social prescription and six visits with an occupational therapist or occupational therapy doctoral student Exclusion Criteria: * Have ever been diagnosed with dementia * Not fluent in English
Interventions
- BehavioralOccupational Therapy Led Social Prescription
The intervention includes encouragement to participate in the co-designed social prescription with 6 monthly sessions with an occupational therapist or occupational therapy doctoral student.
Location
- Colorado State UniversityFort Collins, Colorado