Depression
Conditions
Keywords
Depression, African Americans, Exercise, Culturally tailored intervention, Health disparities
Brief summary
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.
Detailed description
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.
Interventions
BEHAVIORALAAHC Exercise Program Support Group
6-week community-based, culturally tailored support group program, focusing on exercise and healthy lifestyle habits. Groups will also include basic psychoeducation about depression and depression care. Groups will have up to 20 participants and will meet weekly for 2 hours. By the end of the program, participants will be encouraged to create a personalized action plan focusing on exercise and other healthy lifestyle choices.
Sponsors
African American Health Coalition
Oregon Health and Science University
Study design
Allocation
NA
Intervention model
SINGLE_GROUP
Primary purpose
HEALTH_SERVICES_RESEARCH
Masking
NONE
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No
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.
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| Change in depression severity, as measured by the Depression Scale of the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) | Week 1 (pre-test) and week 6 (post-test) |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| Attitudes about exercise, exercise self-efficacy and readiness to exercise using physical activity assessment scale (PAAS). | Week 1 and Week 6 |
| Use of guideline-concordant depression therapies | week 1 and week 6 |
| Acceptability of antidepressant therapy and counseling | week 1 and week 6 |
| Frequency of exercise using the International Physical Activity questionnaire(IPAQ). | Week 1 and Week 6 |
| Satisfaction with program | week 6 |
| Attendance to sessions | Each week for 6 weeks |
| Depression care self-efficacy | week 1 and week 6 |
| Depression self-care behaviors | week 1 and week 6 |
Countries
United States
Outcome results
None listed