Digital Nutrition Intervention for Older Adults

Physical Inactivity Clinical Trial

Official title:

A Technological Intervention to Improve Nutrition Among Older Adult Congregate Meal Participants During COVID-19

Clinical Trial Details — Status: Active, not recruiting

Administrative data

• NCT number: NCT05220631
• Other study ID #: 20-21-241
• Secondary ID: 1R01NR020303-01
• Status: Active, not recruiting
• Phase: N/A
• Start date: June 1, 2022
• Est. completion date: June 30, 2025

Study information

• Verified date: May 2024
• Source: The University of Texas at San Antonio
• Contact: n/a
• Is FDA regulated: No
• Study type: Interventional

Clinical Trial Summary

The "digital divide" or gap in technological access and knowledge, for older adults has worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to disruptions in services like congregate meal programs funded by the Older Americans Act. Seven San Antonio congregate meal sites remained partially open biweekly to distribute meals but no longer offer in-person nutrition education, physical activity classes, and social activities. The proposed project will test the efficacy of digital nutrition intervention with at-risk older adults who attend congregate meal center in areas of high poverty and digital exclusion.

The study is uses a stepped-wedge cluster clinical trial. Key community partners with the Department of Health Services Senior Services Division and Older Adult Technology Services (OATS) will participate in the planning phase, research design, and implementation of the study.

The study aims are:

1. To test the impact of a technology-based intervention on the primary outcomes of food security and diet quality;

2. To determine the effect of the intervention on secondary outcomes of technology knowledge and usage, physical activity, and social isolation and loneliness;

3. To examine the long-term impact and sustainability of technology use on food security, diet quality, physical activity, and social isolation.

If successful, the impact of this program could be applied throughout the national OATS network and to similar CMPs to bridge the digital divide beyond the COVID-19 pandemic

Description:

This project will target community-dwelling older adults who are "congregate meal" program (CMP) participants living in areas at-risk of the digital divide. The CMP is funded by the Older Americans Act and serves over 2000 San Antonio older adults who live 33% below the poverty level and 18% considered at high nutritional risk. During the pandemic, seven San Antonio sites in areas with high poverty and digital exclusion remain partially open biweekly to distribute meals but did not hold in-person nutrition education, physical activity classes, and social activities. The proposed project extends existing congregate meal programming infrastructure and partnerships with Older Adults Technology Services (OATS), a national leader in creating health service programs focusing on older adults. The goal of the proposed study is to remove the digital barrier to receiving essential, evidence-based nutrition programming online, utilizing OATS' five-week technology "Essential Series," which has successfully educated thousands of older adults nationwide by providing support for technology and internet connectivity.

This proposed nutrition intervention will enrolled congregate meal participants using a stepped-wedge cluster design with two cohorts to allow for sequential intervention enrollment with simultaneous control and intervention data collection timepoints. Key community partners within Department of Health Services Senior Services Division and OATS will participate in the planning phase, research design, and implementation of the study. Feedback from congregate meal participants in focus groups will guide the development of the intervention.

The 20-week intervention will include 5 weeks technology training, including internet access and devices, followed by 15 weeks of a culturally tailored nutrition intervention via online sessions. The study will recruit 440 older adult from seven at-risk congregate meal sites. Data will be collected at baseline (T0), during the online intervention (T1), after the online intervention (T2) and 6 months post-intervention (T3).

The successful outcome of our study will be impactful because of the potential broader application of this program throughout the national OATS network and to similar CMPs to bridge the digital divide through and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic.

Recruitment information / eligibility

• Status: Active, not recruiting
• Enrollment: 369
• Est. completion date: June 30, 2025
• Est. primary completion date: September 30, 2024
• Accepts healthy volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers
• Gender: All
• Age group: 60 Years to 120 Years

Eligibility

Inclusion Criteria:

• 60 years of age

• Inadequate or no working technology device (computer, smart-phone, tablet), no or poor internet connectivity at home, or lack of knowledge and usage of technology

• Food insecurity or low diet quality

Exclusion Criteria:

• Blind

• Terminal disease or illness

• Diagnosis of dementia or Alzheimer's disease

• Unable to read or write in English or Spanish

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Malnutrition
• Nutrition Poor
• Physical Inactivity
• Social Isolation

Intervention

Behavioral:
• Technology intervention
Older Adult Technology Services (OATS) 5-week technology intervention
• Digital Nutrition Intervention
15-week nutrition intervention delivered completely online

Locations

Country	Name	City	State
United States	University of Texas at San Antonio	San Antonio	Texas

Sponsors (5)

Lead Sponsor	Collaborator
The University of Texas at San Antonio	Agile Analytics, LLC, City of San Antonio Department of Human Services, National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR), Older Adult Technology Services

Country where clinical trial is conducted

United States, 

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* Note: There are 48 references in all — Click here to view all references

Outcome

Type	Measure	Description	Time frame	Safety issue
Primary	Diet Quality as measured by the Healthy Eating Index	Two non-consecutive 24-hour dietary recalls will be collected and the Healthy Index will be calculated to determine diet quality.	Change in diet quality from baseline to 3 and 6 months
Secondary	Food Security	Food security measured by the USDA's US Adult Food Security Survey Module	Change in food security from baseline to 3 and 6 months
Secondary	Physical Activity	Physical activity measured by the Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly (PASE)	Change in physical activity from baseline to 3 and 6 months
Secondary	Technology Use and Access	Technology use questionnaire from the National Health & Aging Trends Study	Change in technology use and access from baseline to 3 and 6 months
Secondary	Attitudes Towards Technology	Adapted from Attitudes Towards Computers Questionnaire (ATCQ)	Change in attitudes towards technology from baseline to 3 and 6 months
Secondary	Social Isolation	Social isolation measured by The Social Disconnectedness Scale and the Perceived Isolation Scale	Change in social isolation from baseline to 3 and 6 months
Secondary	Loneliness	Loneliness assessed by the 3-item UCAL Loneliness Scale	Change in loneliness from baseline to 3 and 6 months
Secondary	Malnutrition	Malnutrition measured by the Mini Nutrition Assessment Short-Form	Change in malnutrition from baseline to 3 and 6 months

External Links

•   7 Facts about Older Adults and SNAP. National Council on Aging.
•   Evaluation of the Effect of the Older Americans Act Title III-C Nutrition Services Program on Participants' Food Security, Socialization, and Diet Quality
•   Food Insecurity Among Older Adults
•   Status of Poverty in San Antonio 2019