GPS Base System :Support Walking Exercise & Health Monitoring for IDD Individual

描述（由申请人提供）：包括唐氏综合症在内的智力残疾个体与一般人群之间的健康差异有很好的记录。这些差异包括与肥胖和心脏病有关的问题。文献中指出了一些因果因素，如活动水平较低、饮食不良以及与获得保健服务有关的问题。解决这些问题的努力取得了一定的成功，但由于费用和工作人员密集的性质，在固有的支助需要方面，没有得到广泛执行。需要探索有可能以鼓励成本效益、自我指导和独立的方式减轻这些健康差距的新办法。本项目提出开发和评估一种新方法，旨在为患有体重和心血管问题的智障人士提供动力、增加体力活动和监测支持。它涉及开发一种便携式集成GPS硬件/软件系统，旨在促进用户在当地环境中增加步行锻炼。该系统还将记录/报告活动，并与血压、心率和体重等基本健康监测措施相结合。为了实现这一目标，该系统将包括一个配置模块，护理人员可以使用它来创建基于GPS的导航提示、地标，以及针对当地户外环境的可选“寻宝”。一旦创建，这些路线将被一个或多个智障人士使用，他们可以通过步行来导航路线，同时使用简化的界面来指示成功定位“寻宝”物品。该系统将记录时间、距离和路线旅行的其他参数，以供核实，并提供可选择的游戏式奖励，如可打印的成就证书或积分积累，这些奖励以后可以交换其他有形的强化。最后，该系统将与现有的无线健康监测系统集成，如易于使用的血压、心率和体重监测仪，设计用于完成路线。系统将保留监测人员的措施，以帮助评估干预效果，向护理人员和卫生保健专业人员报告，并随着时间的推移进行进展分析。为完成这项活动，提出了五个具体目标：1)完成初始功能和技术系统需求的开发；2)完成原型设计和开发；3)进行涉及智障人士和其他利益相关者使用原型的实地评估；4)完成最终系统设计和开发活动；5)完成系统文档和项目报告。长期目标是提供一种有重要利益攸关方参与的技术干预，提供基于研究的证据，证明在减少智力残疾人士与运动相关的健康差异方面的可用性和有效性。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Health disparities between individuals with intellectual disabilities, including Down Syndrome, and the general population are well documented. These disparities include issues related to obesity and heart disease. Causal factors have been noted in the literature such as lower activity levels, poor diets and issues related to accessing health care services. Efforts to address these issues have met with moderate success but are not widely implemented due to costs and their staff intensive nature in regards to inherent support needs. New approaches need to be explored that have potential to alleviate these health disparities in ways that also encourage cost effectiveness, self direction and independence. This project proposes development and evaluation of a novel approach designed to provide motivation, increased physical activity and monitoring supports for individuals with intellectual disabilities who experience weight and cardiovascular problems. It involves development of a portable, integrated GPS hardware/software system designed to promote increased walking exercise in the user's local environment. The system will also record/report activity and integrate with basic health monitoring measures such as blood pressure, heart rate and weight. To accomplish this, the system would include a configuration module that would be used by care givers to create GPS based navigation prompts, landmarks, and optional "treasure hunts" for local outdoor environments. Once created, these routes would be used by one or more individuals with intellectual disabilities to navigate the route via foot travel while using a simplified interface to indicate success in locating "treasure hunt" items. The system would record time, distance and other parameters of route travel for verification and provide optional game-like rewards such as printable achievement certificates or point accumulation that could later be exchanged for other tangible reinforcements. Finally, the system will integrate with existing, wireless health monitoring systems such as easy to use blood pressure, heart rate and weight scale monitors designed to be used upon route completion. Measures from the monitors will be retained by the system to help evaluate intervention efficacy, for reporting to caregivers and health care professionals, and for progress analysis over time. Five Specific Aims are proposed to accomplish this activity: 1) complete development of initial functional and technical system requirements, 2) complete prototype design and development, 3) conduct a field evaluation involving the use of the prototype by individuals with intellectual disabilities and other stakeholders, 4) completion of final system design and development activities, and 5) complete system documentation and project reporting. The long term objective is provision of a technology intervention designed with significant stakeholder involvement that provides research based evidence of usability and effectiveness in reducing exercise related health disparities for individuals with intellectual disabilities. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: This project will result in a portable system designed to support increased exercise and monitor/report selected health measures for individuals with intellectual disabilities who are obese or overweight. The benefit to public health may include reduced health disparities, improved cardiovascular and mental health and a reduction in related health care costs.