News Releases

University of Maryland School of Nursing Researcher Awarded $1.9 million grant to Improve Post- Hip Fracture Recovery of Elderly

December 3, 1999

Baltimore, Md. – The University of Maryland School of Nursing announced today that Barbara M. Resnick, PhD, RN, CRNP, an Assistant Professor, has been awarded a $1.9 million grant from the National Institute on Aging, National Institutes of Health, for testing of her Exercise Plus Program Following Hip Surgery.

According to Dr. Resnick, during recovery for older adults following a hip fracture, exercise can improve mobility, strength, functional performance and prevent future falls. Unfortunately, the majority of older adults, she says, do not exercise regularly and approximately 50 percent of those who begin exercise programs drop out after only six months.

The major aim of the Exercise Plus Program is to test the effectiveness of a home delivered self-efficacy based intervention on increasing exercise behavior in older adults following a hip fracture. Participants will be randomly assigned to one of four groups defined by the 2 x 2 design: (1) An Exercise Trainer component which includes regular home visits by an exercise trainer to implement an exercise program with patients; (2) a Plus component only which includes motivational interventions but without an exercise trainer with exercise; (3) the full Exercise Plus program, which includes the Plus Component (motivational intervention) and the Exercise Trainer component; or (4) routine care. The work, a joint effort between Dr. Resnick and the faculty of the University of Maryland School of Medicine, will recruit a total of 240 participants from five acute care facilities participating in the Baltimore Hip Study. Findings will contribute to the understanding of what interventions improve exercise behavior in the older adult after a hip fracture, and to add to the current base of knowledge regarding the benefits of exercise to the frail elderly.

The Exercise Plus Program was developed based on the findings of research performed by the previous Baltimore Hip Studies, Principal Investigator, Dr. Jay Magaziner from the University of Maryland School of Medicine, Division of Gerontology, and Dr. Resnick's ongoing work related to motivating older adults to exercise.