Many older adults, and particularly those with disabilities, experience barriers to participating in group exercise classes in-person, including limited transportation and inaccessible classes and facilities. Telewellness programs, which are delivered remotely via technology such as Zoom, hold great potential to support physical activity and social connectedness among older adults at home. However, there is limited guidance on how to design and execute telewellness classes to promote safety, technical support, and social engagement among participants. A new TechSAge publication in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health presents research-driven guidelines for delivering group exercise programs via videoconferencing to older adults. Guidelines were informed by a human factors approach to developing a Tele Tai Chi intervention for older adults with mobility disabilities, including a literature review, user needs research, and a feasibility study. Read the full article.

Alyssa Stanfield is the Assistant Director for the Center on Health, Aging, and Disability (CHAD) at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Along with this role, Alyssa also supports research in the College of Applied Health Sciences and serves as the Operations Manager of the McKechnie Family LIFE Home and Coordinator for Collaborations in Health, Aging, Research, and Technology (CHART). Alyssa coordinates a variety of efforts for TechSAge at Illinois, from technical support, to event planning, to outreach. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Community Health Promotion from Illinois State University. In Alyssa’s free time, she enjoys hiking with her husband, spending time with family, and trying new, local restaurants.