Lincolnshire exercise referral evaluation

Abstract

This document reports on evaluation work completed by the University of Lincoln through the School of Sport and Exercise Science. It examines data stored on the Lincolnshire Sports Partnership’s parachute system regarding patients attending Lincolnshire’s Exercise Referral (ER) Programme, a service funded by Public Health. The analysis was in response to specific questions determined by exercise practitioners, the Lincolnshire Sports Partnership and Public Health Lincolnshire. Data was analysed via a number of statistical methods including Chi-squared and Logistic Regression. The data spanned a period of 3.5 years and included all patients in the database starting a 12-week ER programme between 10th March 2009 through to 22nd August 2012. There were 6637 eligible patients, of which 62.3% completed a 12-week ER programme. Headline findings from the evaluative research identified; 1) There was a significant relationship between those patients who completed the referral programme and a reduction in body mass index (BMI); 2) Those patients completing nine or more (out of 12) weeks of the referral programme were significantly more likely to complete. The number of sessions within a week did not influence completion; 3) There was a significantly increased likelihood for those patients who pay for exercise referral to complete the programme. This was regardless of the deprivation score of their home postcode and 4) There was no significant relationship between the way a referral is initiated and a patient completing a referral programme. More than half of these data were missing; however, hence the validity of this finding is impaired. These findings were used to generate recommendations regarding the data that is currently collected via the parachute system and the processes that are employed by the ER programmes