Older adults’ experiences of using a wearable activity tracker with health professional feedback over a 12-month randomised controlled trial

Katie Jane Brickwood; Andrew D. Williams; Greig Watson; Jane O’Brien

doi:10.1177/2055207620921678

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Older adults’ experiences of using a wearable activity tracker with health professional feedback over a 12-month randomised controlled trial

Katie Jane Brickwood, Andrew D. Williams, Greig Watson and Jane O’Brien

Digital Health, Vol.6, pp.1-13

2020

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/2055207620921678

PMID: 32426152

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Abstract

older adults

Physical activity

telemedicine

wearables

Objective: Wearable activity trackers can help older adults remain physically active. However, knowledge of the user experience during long-term use is scarce. Therefore, this study examined older adults’ experiences with, and perceptions of, wearable activity trackers combined with health professional feedback after a year’s use as part of a randomised controlled trial. Methods: Twenty older adults (73.6 ± 5.5 years) who had used a Jawbone UP24 activity tracker for 12 months during a randomised controlled trial were recruited for this study. All participants had at least one chronic condition. Acceptability data relating to activity tracker wear time was combined with focus group data to explore participants experiences of long-term activity tracker use. Data was analysed using thematic analysis. Results: The activity tracker was well-accepted with the device worn on an average of 86% of possible days and participants reported an overall positive experience. Four themes were identified: (a) increased sense of awareness of activity levels is related to motivation; (b) the level of engagement with the activity tracker influences the user experience; (c) the role of feedback from a health professional in providing ongoing support; d) the role of habits in supporting long-term behaviour change. Conclusions: The use of an activity tracker combined with health professional support can assist older adults to maintain their activity levels over 12 months. Consideration should be given to the previous technology experience of users and the design and accuracy of an activity tracker when recommending their use in a research or clinical setting.

Details

Title: Older adults’ experiences of using a wearable activity tracker with health professional feedback over a 12-month randomised controlled trial
Authors: Katie Jane Brickwood (Corresponding Author) - University of Tasmania
Andrew D. Williams (Author) - University of Tasmania
Greig Watson (Author) - University of Tasmania
Jane O’Brien (Author) - University of Tasmania
Publication details: Digital Health, Vol.6, pp.1-13
Publisher: Sage Publications Ltd.
Date published: 2020
DOI: 10.1177/2055207620921678
ISSN: 2055-2076
PMID: 32426152
Copyright note: Creative Commons CC BY: This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) which permits any use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the SAGE and Open Access pages (https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/open-access-at-sage).
Grant note: The research is supported by internal funding available through the University of Tasmania.
Organisation Unit: School of Health - Nursing
Language: English
Record Identifier: 991212662302621
Output Type: Journal article

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