MedEx is a novel community-based exercise rehabilitation programme for chronic illness located in Dublin City University. It provides supervised exercise classes to patients with lung disease, heart disease, peripheral arterial disease, diabetes and cancer. Since it began, MedEx has grown immensely and the vision is to continue this growth and ‘transform more lives’. One of the MedEx aims to develop a home programme. Patients encounter a number of barriers to attending supervised exercise classes including geographical location, transportation, and ill health. A home programme will support those who are unable to attend supervised classes undertake structured exercise. Developing a home programme involves the consideration of a number of factors, including how participant progress will be measured.
Aerobic endurance is one of the most important progress indicators. It is strongly associated with the patients overall health. In MedEx, aerobic endurance is measured using the 6 minute walk test (6MWT). However, it is not known whether patients can perform this test alone in their home or community. The aim of this project is to determine the validity and reliability of the self-administered 6MWT. Participants will be recruited from the MedEx programme and will perform the 6MWT in the supervised setting of MedEx and then in a non-supervised setting of their home or community on two separate occasions. The findings of this project will determine the suitability of a self administered 6MWT in a home exercise programme as a valid outcome measure in a MedEx Home Programme.