Open Collections

McKenna, Julia

University of British Columbia

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated symptoms of stress, burnout, depression, and anxiety among healthcare workers (HCWs). Physical activity (PA) improves mental and physical health; it can be used as a coping strategy by individuals experiencing high levels of stress and poor mental health. Research has investigated the use of mobile health (mHealth) interventions to promote PA. The COVID-19 Pandemic and exercise for healthcare workers (COPE HCW) trial was a novel 12-week mHealth exercise intervention tailored to HCWs using a suite of at-home exercise apps. Very few studies have investigated or evaluated the engagement in an mHealth exercise intervention among HCWs, and studies have rarely used qualitative methods to examine engagement in such interventions. Using the Capability-Opportunity-Motivation-Behavior (COM-B) model and Diffusion of Innovation (DoI) theory, this study explores the following research questions: 1) How well did the COPE HCW intervention address capability, opportunity and motivation for individuals demonstrating different engagement profiles? 2) What DoI attributes of the COPE HCW intervention were associated with engagement in the trial? 3) What can be learned from applying these theories to understanding engagement in mHealth interventions? Methods: One-on-one semi-structured interviews were conducted via Zoom with 25 HCWs in British Columbia who recently completed the COPE HCW trial. Interviews were analyzed through reflexive thematic analysis methods. Results: Both high and low engagers shared similar themes with regards to compatibility, complexity, relative advantage, observability, and trialability. Motivation was the main factor differentiating high and low engagers; most particularly, intention to exercise. Other differences were noted among shift and non-shift workers, as shift workers expressed reduced energy and opportunity to engage in exercise. Discussion: COM-B and DoI are complementary theories that serve as an effective approach in evaluating engagement in an mHealth intervention. While mHealth apps provide many factors to facilitate easier engagement in exercise, user engagement with an app may depend on individual motivation. Future interventions should employ counselling or motivational interviewing techniques in conjunction with the use of mHealth apps to support behaviour change.

Text

2024-01-10

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International

http://hdl.handle.net/2429/87202

Kinesiology

University of British Columbia

UBCV

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/