Active Residents in Care Homes (ARCH)
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Active Residents in Care Homes (ARCH) – increasing physical activity, health and wellbeing in elderly care home residents.
IRAS ID
153357
Contact name
Michael Hurley
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
St George's University of London
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 11 months, 31 days
Research summary
There are about 400,000 residents in UK care homes mainly elderly people whose independence is compromised by physical and mental frailty and ill-health, of whom 80% have dementia. Many care homes provide excellent care, but depersonalising environments and working practices can stifle physical activity and mental stimulation, adversely affecting resident’s health, wellbeing, and dignity and increasing the risk of falls/fractures.
Previous research shows that “traditional” exercise classes have limited effectiveness for residents in care homes, possibly because not enough consideration has been given to their specific needs and the special requirements for the physical environment and organisational culture of care homes. Moreover, responsibility for promoting physical activity among residents falls to care home staff who can feel ill-equipped to supervise exercise programmes. Consequently, many residents have limited opportunities for physical activity, and spend long periods sedentary exacerbating the impact of inactivity. Increasing demand for care and severe strain on health and social care budgets means that developing effective and efficient models of care that optimise resident’s physical activity, health and wellbeing is vital.
Active Residents in Care Homes (ARCH) is a person-centred programme that creates opportunities for stimulating physical, mental and social activities by addressing environmental and organisational obstacles, devising personalised activity plans for residents and empowering and educating staff. Preliminary evaluation of the programme’s implementation in local care centres suggests it has wide benefits for residents and staff. However, before considering wider implementation, we need to evaluate its efficacy, costs, understand how it works and the best way to effect implementation.
This three year feasibility study will implement and evaluate ARCH in three residential care homes in London. The study will: assess whether ARCH leads to any improvements in activity for elderly residents aged 65+; explore what residents, staff and other stakeholders think about the programme; and measure the programmes cost effectiveness.
REC name
London - South East Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
14/LO/1329
Date of REC Opinion
12 Sep 2014
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion