We hope the findings of this project lead to enhanced promotion of physical activity by health professionals for people aged 50+ and people of all ages with a physical disability. The aim of the project is to to collaboratively develop and test a strategy to support health professionals to promote PA to their patients – including older adults and children/adolescents/adults with physical disabilities – within their daily clinical practice. The project is currently recruiting participants for phase one of the study-collaborative implementation strategy development. In this phase we will conduct interviews, focus groups, workshops and surveys with health professionals, exercise providers and consumers to identify barriers to PA promotion and collaboratively develop the evidence-based implementation strategies and intervention elements. Phase 2 of the study is a Type 2 hybrid effectiveness-implementation cluster randomised trial (2023 onwards). In Phase 2 we will test the effectiveness of the implementation strategies and intervention elements in a Type 2 hybrid cluster randomised trial recruiting 800 participants across 30 sites. Chief Investigator Professor Cathie Sherrington (IMH) Our team comprises academics, public health experts and health economists from the University of Sydney, UNSW, Western Sydney University and Australian Catholic University, as well as multi-disciplinary clinicians from five Local Health Districts (Sydney, Western Sydney, South-Western Sydney, South-Eastern Sydney and Sydney Children Hospitals Network). Partner organisations include Disability Sport Australia, Australian Physiotherapy Association, Clinical Excellence Commission, iCare and Belgravia Leisure. This project has received ethics approval from Local Health District Ethics Committees and is being funded by an NHMRC Partnership Grant. For more information about this project, please contact: Kate Purcell e: kate.purcell@sydney.edu.au

We hope the findings of this project lead to the implementation of a remotely delivered information and support program that is effective in improving physical activity and other physical and mental health outcomes in women aged 50+ years. The aim of this project is to evaluate the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of the Active Women over 50 program for increasing physical activity compared with a no intervention wait-list, among 1000 women aged 50+ in urban and rural/regional/remote NSW. Participants will be randomly allocated to one of two groups. Group one will receive access to the Active Women over 50 program including a tailored website, telephone health coaching, SMS/email-based messages and Facebook group, to provide support, motivation and guidance on increasing physical activity. Group two will be placed on a waitlist and receive access to the Active Women over 50 program after the 6 month follow-up. Principal Investigator: Professor Anne Tiedemann (IMH) Investigators: Professor Cathie Sherrington (IMH), Associate Professor Leanne Hassett (IMH), Professor Philayrath Phongsavan (University of Sydney), Emeritus Professor Adrian Bauman (University of Sydney), Dr Abigail Haynes (University of Sydney), Dr Marina de Barros Pinheiro (University of Sydney), Dr Dominika Kwasnicka (University of Melbourne), Professor Nehmat Houssami (University of Sydney), Associate Professor Simon Rosenbaum (University of New South Wales), Associate Professor Georgina Luscombe (University of Sydney), Dr Heidi Gilchrist (University of Sydney), Geraldine Wallbank (University of Sydney), Dr Grace McKeon (University of New South Wales), Professor Kirsten Howard (University of Sydney), Dr Raaj Kishore Biswas (SLHD), Susan Linney (consumer advisor), Trish Stabback (consumer advisor CWA NSW), Kamilla Haufort (consumer advisor COTA NSW). The sponsor of this trial is The University of Sydney. Funding is from the Medical Research Future Fund.

We hope the findings of this project lead to the development of a dance program that is effective in preventing falls among people aged 60+ years. RIPE Dance (Really Is Possible for Everyone), provides popular, long-running tailored dance programs, with a fall prevention focus, for over 100 older people in Southeast Queensland. We plan to conduct a pilot RCT of RIPE dance classes for community-dwelling people aged 60+. The objective is to test the feasibility, acceptability, and intervention impact of the RIPE dance classes. The results will inform the design and methods for a planned large trial of tailored dance classes for older people, with falls as the primary outcome. Principal Investigator: Dr Heidi Gilchrist (IMH) Investigators: Professor Anne Tiedemann (IMH), Professor Cathie Sherrington (IMH), Dr Abigail Haynes (University of Sydney), Dr Juliana Oliveira (IMH), Professor Dafna Merom (Western Sydney University). The sponsor of this trial is The University of Sydney. Funding is from the Physiotherapy Research Foundation.

The aim of this trial is to i) adapt and ii) test the impact of an effective group-based exercise mobility program across two hospitals in Sydney: St George Private Hospital and Prince of Wales Hospital. Stage 1 of this project will involve collaborative adaptation of the program with clinicians, consumers and managers. Stage 2 will involve a stepped wedge trial. We have submitted ethics application for Stage 1. Academic lead investigator: Dr Marina Pinheiro Clinician Lead investigator: Dr Peter Youssef, Prof Cathie Sherrington Our team comprises academics, clinicians, and consumers from both sites. This project is funded by a Ramsay Research Foundation Grant. For more information about this study please contact Dr Marina Pinheiro: marina.pinheiro@sydney.edu.au

RESOLVE-D aims to accelerate the research translation of graded sensorimotor retraining, a new therapeutic intervention for chronic low back pain. The project team are partnering with Noigroup, an industry leading clinical education provider, to develop a clinician training package for graded sensorimotor retraining, test whether it produces better outcomes than best practice care and evaluate implementation in clinical practice. RESOLVE-D will deliver clinician and patient materials that have been refined to ensure commercial viability and optimised for superior user experience.

This project focuses on understanding and reducing falls in the acute inpatient hospital setting. A trial testing locally co-created implementation support strategies for addressing falls is currently underway in 12 hospital wards in Sydney.

TOP UP aims to provide an effective and scalable way to deliver tailored physiotherapist-prescribed exercise programs that improve mobility, reduce falls and enhance quality of life for aged care services users. The TOP UP program was co-designed in partnership with aged care providers, physiotherapists and aged care service users and their caregivers. A pilot trial found it to be acceptable, feasible and effective at increasing mobility and quality of life with reduced falls, including in people with moderate dementia, and those living at home as in residential aged care. We are now further developing the TOP UP website using ‘double diamond’ co-design methodology.

We hope the findings of this project lead to enhanced promotion of physical activity by health professionals for people aged 50+ and people of all ages with a physical disability. The aim of the project is to determine whether a health professional education and support package (workshop, website, on-line discussion, phone/email support) increases promotion of physical activity and frequency of recommendations about attendance at community-based structured physical activity opportunities among people aged 50+ and/or people of any age with physical disabilities compared with waiting list control. This project is currently recruiting. Chief Investigator: Professor Cathie Sherrington (IMH) Associate Investigators: Professor Anne Tiedemann (IMH), Dr Leanne Hassett (IMH), Dr Bethan Richards (IMH), Professor Louise Baur (The Children’s Hospital at Westmead & The University of Sydney), Professor Adrian Bauman (The University of Sydney), Professor Lisa Harvey (The University of Sydney), Associate Professor Philayrath Phongsavan (University of Sydney), Professor Jennifer Alison (University of Sydney), Associate Professor Ben Smith (University of Sydney), Kate Purcell (IMH), Jenni Cole (Disability Sports Australia), Professor Chris Rissel (University of Sydney & the NSW Office of Preventive Health), Associate Professor Jeff Walkley (Belgravia Leisure), Dr Genevieve Dwyer (Western Sydney University), Kerry West (IMH). This project has received ethics approval from Local Health District Ethics Committees and is being funded by Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) Rapid Applied Research Translation Grant. For more information about this project, please contact: Kate Purcell e: kate.purcell@sydney.edu.au