Recorded presentation

Nancy Whitelaw, PhD, Serena Sanker, MSG, and Bonita L. Beattie, PT. Vital Aging Center -- Health Studies, The National Council on the Aging, 300 D Street, SW, Suite 801, Washington, DC 20024, 202-479-6641, serena.sanker@ncoa.org

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regular moderate physical activity on most, if not all, days of the week results in significant health benefits for people of all ages. Funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and in collaboration with the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC), The National Council on the Aging (NCOA) sought to bring national attention to best practices in physical activity programs operated by local public or non-profit organizations that serve older adults. A national competition was held to identify Best Practice Programs in Physical Activity for Older Adults. Programs were rated on multiple components, including quality and innovation in physical activity programming, partnerships, staff training, and outcome evaluation. Following an initial application review process of over 80 applications, NCOA and UIC conducted in-depth telephone interviews with 29 programs. Ten programs were subsequently selected as exceptional programs, and each was awarded $1,000 and a certificate of achievement from NCOA. A team of NCOA, UIC, and members of the CDC’s Healthy Aging Network then conducted onsite reviews of the programs to learn more about the numerous elements of successful programming. NCOA and UIC will present data collected during the competition process, including types of program providers, diversity in program offerings, creative solutions to common barriers, and components that contribute to quality programming. Data gathered from the initial telephone interviews and the site visits are contributing to ongoing work to develop a template of the essential components of effective physical activity programming to be disseminated nationally.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant (learner) in this session will be able to

• Describe characteristics of high quality physical activity programming for older adults.
• Discuss the importance of various components in the development, implementation, and maintenance of high quality physical activity programming for older adults.

Keywords: Evidence Based Practice, Physical Activity

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.

Recorded presentation