Occupational Therapy News OTnews October 2019 | Page 47

ACTIVITY FEATURE
© GettyImages/Mladen Zivkovic
A project was developed within Ravenswood House that
explored whether setting up and running a ‘Fitbit Group’ had
positive outcomes on the health and wellbeing of participating
patients. Fitbit devices were selected, as the literature suggested
they were the most reliable at a reasonable cost (Diaz et al 2015).
Patients at Ravenswood House have access to a sports hall
and multi-gym, which includes a treadmill, cross trainer and
rowing machine. Times are restricted to when staff are able to run
sessions. Some patients also have access to the grounds for fresh
air and exercise; this is time limited and only during certain times of
the day.
Feedback and interest from patients was sought at the
initial planning stages. This enabled discussion about practical
arrangements to be clarified, such as the charging and syncing of
devices.
Several security issues were highlighted, such as Wi-Fi and
device syncing, but using the basic Fitbit Flex enabled these to be
overcome.
Five participants were recruited for the initial group, with the
intention of running an eight week pilot. This group met on a weekly
basis to enable Fitbit charging and syncing, and to discuss health
related topics or issues they encountered with the equipment.
Over the course of the first few weeks further aspects were
developed, including: individualised exercise times; short group
exercise sessions to supplement open gym access; and support to
use ground leave as means for motivation.
Device syncing allowed data to be collected on a weekly basis.
This was reviewed with each participant to assess their activity
levels during the previous week and make short-term goals to
improve this accordingly.
Conn et al (2019) conducted a scoping review to
identify what is known about occupational therapy
interventions addressing weight gain and obesity
in adults with severe mental illness. Following
screening, fourteen studies were included in the
review. Thematic analysis identified a central
theme, ‘supporting occupational performance and
participation in health promoting occupations’.
This central theme included four subthemes:
facilitating client-centred practice, addressing
personal performance issues, addressing
environmental barriers and providing the ‘just
right’ challenge. The authors identify that
addressing weight related concerns within this
population is a growing area of practice for
occupational therapists, and suggest the need for
additional research to build the evidence base.
Reference
Conn A, Bourke N, James C, Haracz K (2019)
Occupational therapy intervention addressing
weight gain and obesity in people with severe
mental illness: a scoping review. Australian
Occupational Therapy Journal, 66(4) 446–457.
Increased activity levels
Initial feedback highlighted the stark difference for those with
community access between days with and without community
leave, and all participants appeared to have increased their activity
levels as a consequence of having data to review.
The participants reported improved self-awareness about their
daily activity monitoring and nutritional intake, helping them work
OTnews October 2019 47