Free WVU fall prevention research study seeks participants ages 55 and older

Adults ages 55 and older in Monongalia and surrounding counties may be eligible to participate in a free fall-prevention study aimed at improving balance, strength, and flexibility through exercise that uses Tai Chi movements.

The West Virginia University Department of Orthopaedics and the Center for Excellence in Disabilities will deliver the Moving for Better Balance program using a video-conferencing platform. Groups of participants will gather at a local community site and the instructor will teach the class via a live video feed.

The hour-long classes begin at locations in Morgantown, W.Va.; New Martinsville, W.Va.; and Carmichaels, Pa. the week of April 15th and are held twice each week for 16 weeks. 

Spots are limited.  To determine eligibility, please contact the project coordinator Maura Robinson at 304-293-0742, or email maura.robinson@hsc.wvu.edu.

The study is a collaboration between WVU Orthopaedics; the Center for Excellence in Disabilities; WVU Injury Control Research Center and its Mountain Safe initiative; WVU Mountaineer Doctor Television; WVU Medicine Wellness Center; and the West Virginia Violence and Injury Prevention Program.

The study is led by Dina L. Jones, P.T., Ph.D., professor in WVU’s Department of Orthopaedics and Division of Physical Therapy. It is funded by a grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

WVU is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Institution. WVU Institutional Review Board approval is on file for this study.

For more information on WVU Orthopaedics, visit medicine.hsc.wvu.edu/ortho.

-WVU-

3/27/2019

CONTACT: Cassie Thomas, WVU School of Medicine

304.293.3412; cassie.thomas@hsc.wvu.edu