ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Rehabil. Sci.
Sec. Disability, Rehabilitation, and Inclusion
Volume 6 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fresc.2025.1602007
This article is part of the Research TopicDesigning for Engagement in Digital Health for Chronic and Long-Term CareView all 9 articles
Qualitative Insights from an Online Community-Based Exercise Intervention for Persons Living with HIV
Provisionally accepted- 1Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- 2Department of Physical Therapy, Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- 3Realize Canada, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- 4MAP Centre for Urban Health Solutions, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- 5Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- 6Institute of Health Policy Management and Evaluation, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- 7McMaster Collaborative for Health and Aging, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
- 8Women's College Research Institute (WCRI), Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- 9School of Rehabilitation Science, Faculty of Health Sciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
- 10Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network (UHN), Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- 11Rehabilitation Sciences Institute, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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Introduction: Online community-based exercise (CBE) is a rehabilitation strategy that can promote health outcomes among people living with HIV. Our aim was to describe experiences implementing a community-based exercise (CBE) intervention with adults living with HIV.We conducted a longitudinal qualitative descriptive study involving interviews with adults living with HIV and persons implementing an online tele-coaching CBE intervention. Leveraging community-based research principles, the intervention aimed to improve physical activity engagement and health outcomes through online individualized coaching, online YMCA resources, and wearable fitness technology. We analyzed interviews with adults living with HIV and representatives involved in CBE implementation at baseline (month 0), end of intervention (6 months), and end of follow-up phase (12 months).Results: Thirteen adults living with HIV and eight representatives involved in CBE implementation participated in the study (43 interviews total). Key themes included the "four Cs": Cost, Care, Comfort, and Convenience that encapsulated participants' perceptions of financial barriers, need for holistic healthcare integration, importance of stigma-free and emotionally supportive environments, and accessibility of health interventions.Discussion: Results underscore the critical role of inclusive and adaptable exercise programs in addressing the complex needs of individuals with chronic, episodic conditions like HIV, and the value of participatory, community-driven methodologies in designing effective and equitable health interventions.
Keywords: hiv/aids, Exercise, interviews, community-based research, qualitative research Trial registration number NCT05006391
Received: 28 Mar 2025; Accepted: 04 Aug 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Ibanez-Carrasco, McDuff, Da Silva, Bayoumi, Chan Carusone, Loutfy, Tang, Ahluwalia, Avery and O'Brien. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Kelly K. O'Brien, Department of Physical Therapy, Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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