Research & Knowledge Transfer

Maintaining good physical function (i.e., regular physical activity, balance, and muscular strength) is important in older adults as it is associated with better health and well-being, and is an important protective factor against falls. Specifically, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends older adults to engage in training on functional balance and strength training on three or more days during a week to enhance functional capacity and prevent falls. Unfortunately, few older adults are aware of, and engage in sufficient training for such purposes. Therefore, Professor Amy Ha, Professor Yang Yi Jian and Dr Johan Ng of Department of Sports Science and Physical Education designed a web-based, peer-facilitated intervention to improve physical function in retired adults. Key program contents include a series of educational videos on topics related to physical functions, and coach-led instructional exercise videos for home-based exercises. To enhance support provided to participants, groups of 5-10 retirees will be formed and included in mobile messaging groups. Each group will include a “captain”, who was specifically trained to provide appropriate support and encourage, and to coordinate co-activity (virtual or in-person) sessions. At the completion of the program, participants will be invited to serve as captains in new groups by inviting other peers to take part. The reach of the project could continue to grow through the branching mechanism. By reaching out to the wider community, the overall awareness and levels of physical function in older adults could be raised. Population health could also be improved, and hence a portion of the expected increases in medical expense due to an ageing population could be mitigated.