JOIN4JOY Project

“Enjoy physical activity to battle sedentary behaviour and inactivity among older adults from a socially inclusive perspective” is an Erasmus-Sport 2021 project which started in June 2022 and with a total duration of 3 years.

How did the project come about?

Sedentary behavior and physical inactivity have increased substantially over the last decades, with older adults being the least physically active age group. Previous research in physical activity indicated that enjoyment and social connections are key pillars to sustained physical activity (PA) over time. With this in mind, and an extraordinary team of professionals, we started to develop the Join4Joy project.

Who participates of Join4Joy?

Institutions, older adults, formal and informal caregivers, researchers and students have come together to co-create an approach that seeks greater access and adherence to active lifestyles in people 65 years and above.

Universitat de Vic – Univesitat Central de Catalunya is the Coordinating Institution. Our team at UVic consists of: MD Laura Coll-Planas, Javier Jerez-Roig, Andrea Fuente-Vidal, Montse Romero-Mas, Ricard Castro-Prat, Eduard Minobes-Molina and Carles Parés-Martínez.

The Consortium includes a number of specialized institutions in 5 different European countries, each providing a determinant piece of expertise: Italy (Istituto Europeo per lo sviluppo socio economico associazione), France (Sport Initiative et Loisir Bleu Association), Denmark (Syddansk Universitet), Germany (Agaplesion Bethesda Klinik Ulm), and Spain (Fundació Salut i Envelliment, Fundació Blanquerna, Fundació Universitària Balmes). It began in June 2022 and has a total duration of 3 years.

What has Join4Joy done so far?

Dozens of focus groups and one-on-one interviews with over 150 individuals to understand their perspective about PA interventions, education, barriers and facilitators.
Interviews with Academics and Researchers to understand current educational needs in Physiotherapy and Sports Sciences.
Created a set of 9 Join4Joy Ground Principles to guide joyful and inclusive PA interventions.
Conducted 12 pilot interventions, in 5 different countries, involving over 100 end-users. Check out this short TV report on a Join4Joy intervention.
Assessed pre- and post variables such as quality of life, enjoyment, physical function, sedentary time, acceptability, or satisfaction, using a mixed methods (quantitative and qualitative) approach. For more information on study design, visit the Join4Joy protocol publication here.
Created a brief online course to complement previous knowledge on active ageing, by providing contents on the Join4Joy approach. The course is available in English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Danish and Catalan. Scroll down to get direct access codes.

JOIN4JOY FREE EDUCATIONAL TRAINING FOR PROFESSIONALS AND STUDENTS

This course is for you if you have previous education or experience working with older adults. It is especially indicated for graduates of health or sports sciences, but also to nurses, nurse assistants, occupational therapists, physical trainers and students who wish to obtain a broader perspective on PA interventions with older adults.

What does the Join4Joy online educational training consist of?

The course is structured around 10 short video capsules, plus 2 optional capsules. Each capsule is about 8 minutes long. The total duration of the couse is estimated at 2 hours. Completing the course leads to the attainment of an Educational Batch (diploma) by Universitat de Vic.

Contents include:

Physical activity and ageing
Conduction of interviews for improved person-centered care
Setting up flexible, meaningful and consensuated progress plans
Making use of gamification strategies for increased participant engagement
Facilitating long-term adherence by learning and implementing behavior change techniques.

What is the cost to access the Join4Joy course?

Join4Joy is an Erasmus+ project, which has received funding from the European Commission. Our educational training is completely free of cost to the user.

How can I enrol in the Join4Joy course?

Step 1: SCAN or CLICK your preferred QR Code

Step 2: Register to Ubiqua platform (or log-in if you already have an account)

Step 3: Enter Keyword: JOIN4JOY to access the course