The USC PRC: Community-Based Participatory Research to Study Church Implementation of an Evidence-Based Social Support Intervention to Increase Physical Activity among Older African American Adults

University Of South Carolina At Columbia, Columbia SC

Investigators

Abstract

Physical activity (PA) plays a critical role in preventing and treating chronic disease and promoting quality of life across the age spectrum. Older adults, especially racial/ethnic minorities, are a priority population for increasing PA as they experience disproportionate rates of chronic disease, are underactive, and their proportion of the US population is increasing. The USC PRC has established a long and successful history (since 1993) of applied research, practice, and training in physical activity in partnership with communities. In the 2024-2029 cycle, we will use a community-based participatory research approach to guide all activities. The specific aims of this application are to: (1) establish and maintain a PRC infrastructure to conduct applied prevention research, (2) engage the community advisory board (CAB) and other organizational partners to inform all prevention research projects, (3) build capacity to conduct prevention research, (4) communicate information about PRC activities to intended audiences, (5) conduct a dissemination and implementation (D&I) core research project to understand implementation of an evidence-based intervention (EBI) that leverages social networks to support PA change among older African American adults through churches and disseminate and translate the EBI, and (6) participate in the PRC Network and collaborate with other PRCs to increase the Network’s collective impact. Achieving these aims will contribute to the CDC PRC Program’s long-term outcome of widespread, sustained, and scaled-up use of EBIs and systems-wide public health strategies to eliminate the drivers and root causes of health disparities. The proposed core research project uses a within-site pre-post study design to study the implementation of Walk Your Heart to Health (WYHH) by AME Churches. WYHH will be integrated into an EBI shown to increase church capacity for PA and healthy eating (Faith, Activity, and Nutrition, FAN), resulting in a multi-level approach. The study’s primary focus is to study implementation outcomes. The Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research will help inform three primary questions: (1) how do contextual factors influence implementation and sustainability success or failure? (2) what barriers and facilitators to implementation exist? and (3) how can the EBI be scaled up to broader regions or populations outside the research community? Data from pastors and church implementers will come from multiple sources (surveys, interviews, etc.) and time points and will be analyzed using a matrixed multiple case study approach and rapid qualitative analysis. We will work with the CAB and other partners to ensure cultural relevance of intervention strategies and support materials in Year 1, pilot the implementation strategies and measurements in Year 2 (6 churches), conduct the implementation study in Years 3 and 4 (20 churches), and focus on translation and scale up activities in Year 5. A secondary focus is to study participant-level outcomes. Increasing PA in older adults is a Healthy People 2030 goal. Churches are vital but underutilized institutions for implementing EBIs that can contribute to reaching national priorities.