An interventional study of Gym based exercise in Physical Disability, sponsored by Royal College of Surgeons, Ireland. Not yet recruiting. Open to participants aged 13 Years to 24 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-07-14.
Sponsored by Royal College of Surgeons, Ireland · Not applicable, Interventional, and Health services research
FitSkills is an evidence based community based gym programme developed in Australia. It was developed in response to the barriers people with disability experience to accessing community-based physical activity. Within FitSkills, people with disability are paired with university students who act as a peer mentor. Pairs exercise together at a community gym location twice a week for 12 weeks. FitSkills has been shown to improve physical and social health among people with disabilities.
FitSkills has not been delivered outside of Australia. The investigators are assessing how practical it is to deliver FitSkills in Ireland with the support of healthcare and physical activity professionals. The investigators want to understand the demand for this programme among young people with childhood-onset physical disability aged 13-24 years. In addition, the investigators want to learn if taking part in FitSkills influences exercise confidence and mental health and well-being among young people with childhood-onset physical disability.
9,798 studies on the registry are indexed under Motor Activity; 1,910 are open to participants now.
This study's planned enrollment of 25 is below the median of 60 across 8,388 interventional studies indexed under Motor Activity.
Browse Motor Activity studies →Royal College of Surgeons, Ireland is the lead sponsor of 93 studies on the registry; 44 are open to participants now.
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Exclusion Criteria:
FitSkills- Community-based physical activity programme
Other: Gym based exercise
12 week community gym exercise programme. Twice weekly gym sessions for 60 minutes. Peer support provided by a third level healthcare student from host university. Standardised exercise programme developed by gym staff with support from the investigators. Goals and preferences of participants considered in programme development. This is the only intervention and there is no additional intervention provided
Participant recruitment (Reach)
Participant recruitment (reach) will be assessed by the number of individuals who express interest in the study and the proportion who are eligible and enrolled. Additional descriptive data will be collected on recruitment, including the number of enquiries and completed expressions of interest, how participants heard about the study (e.g., healthcare professional referral, flyer, or other sources), eligibility outcomes (number eligible, number excluded, and reasons for exclusion), and basic demographic characteristics (age, gender, disability type, and location) of individuals expressing interest.
Time frame: Up to 6 months from study opening for recruitment
Adoption by healthcare and physical activity professionals
Adoption will be assessed by the number and proportion of healthcare and physical activity professionals who are invited and agree to support implementation of the intervention. Additional descriptive data will be collected on professional characteristics (e.g., profession, service type, public or private service, and service location) and reasons for non-participation (e.g., work capacity constraints or lack of interest).
Time frame: Up to 7 months from first participant initiation of the intervention
Intervention Feasibility
Intervention feasibility will be assessed by the proportion of participant pairs who complete the programme at 12 weeks. Additional descriptive data will be collected, including the number of pairs successfully matched (young people and student mentors), the number attending the group orientation session, and participant engagement (e.g., use of the challenge board). Fidelity to programme content and adverse events will be monitored and recorded using exercise log-books.
Time frame: Up to 7 months from first participant initiation of the intervention
Feasibility of the Intervention (Feasibility Intervention Measure)
Feasibility will be assessed using the Feasibility of Intervention Measure (FIM), completed by healthcare and physical activity professionals following completion of their involvement in implementation. The FIM is a 4-item scale assessing perceived feasibility (e.g., whether the programme is possible, practical, and easy to implement), with responses rated on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from completely disagree to completely agree.
Time frame: At completion of professional involvement in intervention implementation (up to 7 months from first participant initiation)
Feasibility of collaboration between professionals
Feasibility of collaboration between healthcare and physical activity professionals will be assessed using a communication logbook completed by professionals involved in implementation. The logbook will capture the number of contacts between professionals and characteristics of communication, including reason for contact, type of communication, and outcome of communication.
Time frame: Up to 7 months from first participant initiation of the intervention
Acceptability of the intervention among professionals
Acceptability of the intervention will be assessed through online focus groups conducted with healthcare and physical activity professionals following implementation. Focus groups will explore participants' perceptions of the acceptability of the programme, including its perceived appropriateness, burden, and satisfaction with implementation.
Time frame: At completion of the intervention (up to 7 months from first participant initiation)
Acceptability of the intervention ( Acceptability of Intervention Measure)
Acceptability will be assessed using the Acceptability of Intervention Measure (AIM), completed by healthcare and physical activity professionals. The AIM is a 4-item scale assessing perceived acceptability (e.g., whether the programme is appealing, meets approval, and is welcomed), with responses rated on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from completely disagree to completely agree.
Time frame: At completion of professional involvement in intervention implementation (up to 7 months from first participant initiation)
Appropriateness of the intervention ( Intervention Appropriateness Measure)
Appropriateness will be assessed using the Intervention Appropriateness Measure (IAM), completed by healthcare and physical activity professionals. The IAM is a scale assessing perceived appropriateness (i.e., the extent to which the programme is suitable and relevant), with responses rated on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from completely disagree to completely agree.
Time frame: At completion of professional involvement in intervention implementation (up to 7 months from first participant initiation)
Acceptability of the intervention among young people
Acceptability of the intervention will be assessed through online semi-structured interviews conducted with young people with disability who participated in the programme. Interviews will explore participants' perceptions of acceptability, including satisfaction with the programme, perceived benefits, and burden of participation.
Time frame: At completion of the intervention (up to 7 months from first participant initiation)
Exercise self efficacy ( Exercise Self Efficacy Scale)
Exercise self-efficacy will be assessed using the Exercise Self-Efficacy Scale, completed by young people with childhood-onset physical disability. The scale consists of 10 items assessing confidence in engaging in physical activity, with responses rated on a 4-point Likert scale (not at all true, rarely true, sometimes true, always true). Total scores range from 10 to 40, with higher scores indicating greater exercise self-efficacy.
Time frame: Baseline (prior to intervention initiation) and at 12 weeks (end of intervention)
Mental health and well-being (Mental Health Continuum-Short Form)
Mental health and well-being will be assessed using the Mental Health Continuum-Short Form (MHC-SF), completed by young people with childhood-onset physical disability. The MHC-SF assesses emotional, social, and psychological well-being using a 6-point Likert scale (1 = everyday to 6 = never). Scores can be interpreted using continuous total and domain scores, with higher scores indicating greater well-being. Participants may also be classified as flourishing, moderately mentally healthy, or languishing based on established scoring criteria.
Time frame: Baseline (prior to intervention initiation) and at 12 weeks (end of intervention)
No study locations are listed for this record.
Start is estimated for Jul 2026; primary completion for Jan 2027, 6 months later.
Of 5,147 non-industry interventional studies with no phase under Motor Activity, half reached primary completion within 17 months of starting (the median), counting those still running; a quarter within 7 and three quarters within 36. This study's planned 6 months is below that.
Counting every sponsor, half of 5,207 studies reached it within 17 months; a quarter within 7 and three quarters within 36.
How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.
This study is not yet recruiting, as verified in May 2026. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.
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Royal College of Surgeons, Ireland