Opportunities to Improve a Mobile Obesity Wellness Intervention for Rural Older Adults with Obesity.

Older adults with obesity are at a high risk of decline, particularly in rural areas. Our study objective was to gain insights into how a potential Mobile Health Obesity Wellness Intervention (MOWI) in rural older adults with obesity, consisting of nutrition and exercise sessions, could be helpful to improve physical function. A qualitative methods study was conducted in a rural community, community-based aging center. Four community leaders, 7 clinicians and 29 patient participants underwent focus groups and semi-structured interviews. All participants had a favorable view of MOWI and saw its potential to improve health and create accountability. Participants noted that MOWI could overcome geographic barriers and provided feedback about components that could improve implementation. There was expressed enthusiasm over its potential to improve health. The use of technology in older adults with obesity in rural areas has considerable promise. There is potential that this intervention could potentially extend to distant areas in rural America that can surmount accessibility barriers. If successful, this intervention could potentially alter healthcare delivery by enhancing health promotion in a remote, geographically constrained communities. MOWI has the potential to reach older adults with obesity using novel methods in geographically isolated regions.

Community-Based Health Care Navigation's Impact on Access to Primary Care for Low-Income Latinos.

INTRODUCTION: Despite the Affordable Care Act's insurance expansion, low-income Latinos are less likely to have a primary care provider compared with other racial/ethnic and income groups. We examined if community-based health care navigation could improve access to primary care in this population. METHODS: We surveyed adult clients of a community-based navigation program serving predominantly low-income Latinos throughout Los Angeles County in 2019. We used multivariable logistic regression models, adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics, to calculate odds ratios for differences in access to primary care and barriers to care between clients who had experienced approximately 1 year of navigation services (intervention group) and clients who were just introduced to navigation (comparison group). RESULTS: Clients in the intervention group were more likely to report having a primary care clinic than the comparison group (Adjusted Odds Ratio [aOR] 3.0, 95%CI: 1.7, 5.4). The intervention group was also significantly less likely to experience several barriers to care, such as not having insurance, not being able to pay for a visit, and not having transportation. CONCLUSIONS: Community-based navigation has the potential to reduce barriers and improve access to primary care for low-income Latinos. In addition to expanding insurance coverage, policymakers should invest in health care navigation to reduce disparities in primary care.

Technology for Behavioral Change in Rural Older Adults with Obesity.

BACKGROUND: Mobile health (mHealth) technologies comprise a multidisciplinary treatment strategy providing potential solutions for overcoming challenges of successfully delivering health promotion interventions in rural areas. We evaluated the potential of using technology in a high-risk population. METHODS: We conducted a convergent, parallel mixed-methods study using semi-structured interviews, focus groups, and self-reported questionnaires, using purposive sampling of 29 older adults, 4 community leaders and 7 clinicians in a rural setting. We developed codes informed by thematic analysis and assessed the quantitative data using descriptive statistics. RESULTS: All groups expressed that mHealth could improve health behaviors. Older adults were optimistic that mHealth could track health. Participants believed they could improve patient insight into health, motivating change and assuring accountability. Barriers to using technology were described, including infrastructure. CONCLUSIONS: Older rural adults with obesity expressed excitement about the use of mHealth technologies to improve their health, yet barriers to implementation exist.