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Conference Agenda

Overview and details of the sessions of this conference. Please select a date or location to show only sessions at that day or location. Please select a single session for detailed view (with abstracts and downloads if available).

Daily Overview

Session

WR1_1_3: Abstract presentations: Equity and Inclusion in Physical Activity and Health
Location: White room 1
Session Chair: Evan Matthews

Presentation 6

4:00pm - 4:10pm

Functional exercise programme for anxiety and mental health in a community rehabilitation service: feasibility in real practice

Natalia Jiménez Modrego¹, Sebastià Mas-Alòs^1,2, Goretti Majós Fontova³

1: National Institute of Physical Education of Catalonia (INEFC), Lleida, Catalonia, Spain; 2: Human Movement Research Group (GRMH), University of Lleida (UdL) Lleida, Catalonia, Spain; 3: Mental Health Department. Santa Maria University Hospital. Lleida, Catalonia, Spain

Purpose:

This project aimed to implement and evaluate a multicomponent exercise programme addressing anxiety and physical fitness among users of a Community Rehabilitation Service (SRC) in Lleida. This initiative is innovative for integrating a structured functional training protocol within a multidisciplinary psychosocial rehabilitation setting in real practice, bridging the gap between clinical mental health care and health-enhancing physical activity.

Methods:

The project’s development involved an interdisciplinary collaboration between exercise physiologists, psychologists, and occupational therapists to adapt functional training to the needs of mental health users. Implementation consisted of an eight-week moderate-intensity programme delivered to an experimental group (n = 9), while a control group (n = 9) received usual care. Evaluation compared both groups using a quasi-experimental design to measure changes in anxiety (GAD-7), fitness (Senior Fitness Test), and quality of life (EQ-5D-5L). Regarding dissemination, the protocol is being shared within the local health network.

Results:

The intervention significantly reduced anxiety (p = 0.022) and improved physical fitness (strength, flexibility, and agility), while health perception (VAS) increased (61.11 to 66.68) in the exercise group. No significant changes occurred in the control group. Main facilitators were high user adherence and effective coordination. Barriers included initial staff training needs and clinical scheduling challenges. The programme proved feasible without adding significant burden to regular practice

Conclusions:

These findings imply that integrating structured exercise into community psychosocial rehabilitation is a viable strategy for health promotion. This supports interdisciplinary policies including physical activity as a core component of mental health recovery services.