WED-049 - Health Educator Experiences in Using Physical Activity for Mental Health

Brief Abstract Summary: Mental health issues, specifically anxiety and depression, continue to be a public health crisis in the U.S. Despite the established therapies of pharmacology and cognitive behavioral therapy, not all patients seek or find relief using these methods. Therefore, other treatment strategies need to be studied, specifically physical activity. The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to understand the experiences of health educators who use physical activity as a strategy for anxiety and depression management among middle-aged women. The theory of planned behavior provided the theoretical foundation for the study as it aims to understand a person’s behavioral intentions. As a result of semi-structure, face-to-face interviews, eight emergent themes developed from data analysis leveraging Quirkos. Recognizing that health educators are pivotal members of the multidisciplinary team, assessing their knowledge, skills, and confidence in making recommendations is essential to holistic care.

Detailed abstract description: Mental health, specifically anxiety and depression, continues to be a public health crisis in the United States. While there is much research supporting the use of physical activity to promote positive mental health, little is known about the experience of health educators in recommending physical activity for mental health in middle-aged women. This basic qualitative research study used semistructured, virtual, face-to-face interviews, with purposeful sampling to learn what knowledge health educators possessed and to identify knowledge gaps.
Using Quirkos, eight emergent themes were identified: physical activity cost-benefit analysis, evidence-based knowledge, physical activity standardization, multidisciplinary team approach, professional preparedness, personal significance, colleagues' proposition, and COVID-19 impact. Participant-approved transcripts, committee consultation, university peer review, and reflective journaling strengthened credibility. Executing open-ended and probing questions as well as purposeful sampling validated transferability. Likewise, dependability and confirmability were strengthened through the mechanism of journaling to capture contemplation, thoughts, critical thinking, personal experiences, and bias.
Participants unanimously aligned with mental health experts on the benefits of physical activity, noting its overall health benefits and proactive disease prevention management. Participants did identify some concerning drawbacks that could adversely affect health and should not be overlooked. Moreover, consistent barriers such as inadequate knowledge, time, confidence, feasibility, and ambiguous responsibility were identified and offers an opportunity for actionable improvement. Furthermore, the outcomes of this supported physical activity, as a successful alternative, alone or in combination, with traditional therapies. Additionally, training on best practices for using physical activity for mental health support is recommended. The American College of Sports Medicine, it’s Exercise is Medicine initiative, provides physical activity guidelines for mental health benefits that would be essential for health educators to know. This aligns with the conference’s first category of leadership, mentoring, and training the next workforce. Ultimately, enhanced education could improve symptom management, patient outcomes, and health educators' professional growth and skill building.