A qualitative analysis of a progressive resistance exercise programme for people with Parkinson's disease.
OBJECTIVE
This qualitative study explored the perceptions of adults with Parkinson's disease (PD) about the positive and negative aspects and outcomes of a community-based progressive resistance strengthening programme (PRST), motivators to begin and continue with the PRST program, and factors that might facilitate or create barriers to participation in and completion of a PRST programme.


METHODS
Three women and 10 men with PD participated in a 10-week community-based strengthening programme. Participants were interviewed at the end of the programme. A phenomenological theoretical framework and a grounded theory methodology were used to underpin the analysis of these data.


RESULTS
Four themes emerged about the participants' experiences of the programme. These were: (i) Motivators for participation in the PRST programme were broader than physical outcomes, (ii) the outcomes were broader than just physical outcomes, (iii) the indicators of success for participants varied, and (iv) the participants' experience of a disease-specific exercise programme was positive.


CONCLUSIONS
The outcomes of this study provide insights, not identified through the quantitative results, into the experiences of people with PD, which have implications for clinicians running future strength training programmes for people with PD.
O'Brien
M
M
Ballarat Health Services, Ballarat, Victoria, Australia. michelleob@bhs.org.au
Dodd
K J
KJ
Bilney
B
B
D000368:Aged; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003153:Community Health Services; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009042:Motivation; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy*; D010349:Patient Compliance / Q000523:psychology; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D055070:Resistance Training; D012944:Social Support