The BWH Wellness Project

Brigham and Women's Hospital292 enrolled

Overview

The investigators propose a 24 week program to provide proof-of-principle evidence that financial incentives stimulate Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) employees to be more physically active.

Participants wear a Fitbit Flex accelerometer for at least six months. During the first two weeks, they are paid simply for wearing the Fitbit. After that, they are regularly paid for either meeting CDC guidelines for moderate physical activity (PA) or increasing their PA by at least 10% from the preceding week. Moderate PA is defined as walking for at least 100 steps per minute for at least 10 minutes at a time. One minute of vigorous PA, over 175 steps/minute, counts as two minutes of moderate PA. In addition to weekly bonuses, there are also bonuses for achieving all goals in 1 month, 3 month, and 6 month intervals. In cases where all three team members received a bonus, their bonuses are doubled. Individuals also fill out weekly questionnaires about their work attendance, as well as longer questionnaires at baseline, three months, and six months.

Study Type

INTERVENTIONAL

Allocation

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

NONE

Enrollment

292

Conditions

Physical Activity

Interventions

Financial BonusesBEHAVIORAL

Each participant is eligible to receive $10 per week for increasing their minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity by 10% from the previous week, or for meeting CDC guidelines of 150 minutes/week. Participants who meet their target minutes of PA every week for one month, three months, or six months receive $15, $25, or $50 bonuses respectively. If all members of a team meet their individual PA goals, each participant's reward is doubled. In total, participants can earn up to $860 if they meet all their goals.

Eligibility

Sex: ALLMin age: 21 YearsHealthy volunteers:

Medical Language ↔ Plain English

Inclusion Criteria: * Brigham and Women's Hospital employee * Reported less than 30 minutes of exercise per week * Use a computer daily at work or home * Willing to wear a pedometer, undergo health screening, and complete occasional questionnaires Exclusion Criteria: * Occupation: Physician, nurse or other clinician * Self-reported pregnancy at baseline

Outcomes

Primary Outcomes

Physical Activity

Minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity (greater than 100 steps/minute)

Time frame: 6 Months

Secondary Outcomes

Individuals Meeting CDC Guidelines

Percentage of cohort that achieved 150 minutes of moderate PA per week

Time frame: 6 Months

Fitbit Adherence

Percentage of cohort that wore their Fitbit for four or more days per week for at least 20 out of 24 weeks

Time frame: 6 Months

Data from ClinicalTrials.gov

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