Website Redesign of a 16-Week Exercise Intervention for People With Spinal Cord Injury by Using Participatory Action Research.
Maria Cole, Katherine Froehlich-Grobe, Simon Driver and 2 others
PMID 31845902WHAT IT FOUND
Seven wheelchair users guided a website redesign for exercise.
They wanted less text, more videos, and easier navigation. The team added peer mentors, weekly virtual group sessions, and text reminders. This describes how the tool was built, not whether it works.
Key findings
01Participants requested substantial design changes to improve usability, specifically asking for a clear roadmap of content order and reduced text volume.
02The redesigned intervention includes peer mentors with spinal cord injury who co-lead virtual sessions and offer support, alongside automated text reminders for workouts.
03The final program structure consists of 16 weekly modules delivered via a website and live group video sessions, replacing the original telephone-based format.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they found
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What it does not show
The sample was very small (n=7) and not representative of the broader population with SCI, being mostly white, highly educated, and employed. This is a development study, not an efficacy trial. No outcomes were measured to see if the website changes actually helped people exercise more. Participants did not review the revised website on their own before the second meeting, limiting the depth of feedback on the final product.
Declared interests
None declared.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume this redesigned website is effective for increasing exercise. This paper only describes how the tool was built based on user feedback. The authors state that feasibility and effectiveness trials are planned for the future, but no results from those trials are reported here.