Sheds for Life: An evaluation of a community- based men’s health promotion programme in the men's shed setting through the application of implementation science

Plain English Summary

Background study and aims
Men's sheds or community sheds are non-profit local organisations that provide a space for craftwork and social interaction.
Although there has been increasing attention on “the problem” of men’s health in recent years, men still remain disproportionately impacted by poorer health, dying younger than women. There have been calls for health promotion initiatives to recognize women and men are different in both biology and their roles in society, which means they require specific strategies that account for gender and sex differences. This is particularly true for “hard-to-reach” groups of men (i.e. those who are unemployed, socially disadvantaged, isolated and have low educational attainment) who are also least likely to engage with health. Men’s Sheds offer a unique opportunity to reach a captive audience of hard-to-reach men. However, attempts to engage Sheds in more structured health promotion programs must respect the ethos of Sheds as highly variable, autonomous, non-structured spaces. “Sheds for Life” is a men’s health intervention that seeks to engage hard-to-reach men with health in the men’s shed setting. It consists of four core pillars of a health check, physical activity, mental health and health eating with supplementary pillars such as diabetes and cancer awareness that Sheds can self-select into. Central to its effective implementation is a partnership approach between the men’s shed members, partner provider organizations, academics and the Irish Men’s Sheds Association. Sheds for Life aims to identify an appropriate model for a structured health promotion program that respects the Sheds environment and is effective in improving health and wellbeing for the men who participate. The overall aim of this research is to investigate the process and effectiveness of the SFL intervention with a focus on the key strategies involved in effective implementation and future scale-up of SFL in order to maximize engagement of hard to reach men in the Sheds setting.

Who can participate?
Members of men’s sheds who chose to participate in Sheds for Life.

What does the study involve?
Men’s shed members who chose to participate in Sheds for Life attend the 10-week program in their sheds. As part of the evaluation, we ask participants to share their health check results (BMI, blood pressure etc.). We also ask questions about their health and wellbeing such as their physical activity levels and how satisfied they feel with life at the beginning of the program, at the end of the program and again 6 and 12 months later. We ask participants in the comparison group the same questions while they are waiting for Sheds for Life to come to their Sheds. We then ask those questions again at the beginning and end of the program and again 6 and 12 months later.

What are the possible benefits and risks of participating?
This study will enable us to find out if Sheds for Life is a model that works in the men’s shed setting. Men’s Shed members are pioneers of the program who work closely with the research team to identify what the needs of the men in the sheds are in terms of health and wellbeing and how we can best meet those needs. Participating in the program will help us to understand how SFL can be most helpful to men. This will in turn help to support men’s shed members to improve their overall health and wellbeing. By demonstrating that SFL works we hope to be able to give all men’s sheds across Ireland the opportunity to participate.

The primary risk for participants is the possibility of being identified as a participant in the research. Steps have been taken to off-set these risks and have been approved by the WIT research ethics committee. All intervention content will be run under the guidance and training of the Irish Men’s Sheds Association and by qualified external partners. All SFL partners are adequately insured and qualified to run elements of SFL and engage in a screening process with participants to assess their ability to partake in the intervention for safety purposes. Screening elements of SFL will be run by registered nurses from the Irish Heart Foundation. Other practitioners working directly with participants are trained in first aid and also will complete Guidance training for working effectively within the environment of the Sheds. This training also incorporates ENGAGE training which is gender-sensitive training for front line service providers working directly with men. In the event that there are any concerns about the health of participants they will be referred to their GP or signposted to the relevant service.

Where is the study run from?
Waterford Institute of Technology (Ireland)

When is the study starting and how long is it expected to run for?
January 2019 to December 2021

Who is funding the study?
The Irish Men’s Sheds Association, The Health Service Executive, partner organizations, Slaintecare and The Irish Research Council

Who is the main contact?
Aisling McGrath (aisling.mcgrath@postgrad.wit.ie)
Edel Byrne (edel@menssheds.ie)

Contact information

Ms Aisling McGrath
Scientific

Department of Sport and Exercise Science
Waterford Institute of Technology
Cork Rd. Campus
Waterford
X91 K0EK
Ireland

ORCID ID	0000-0003-3731-9165
Phone	+353 852163077
Email	aisling.mcgrath@postgrad.wit.ie

Study information

Eligibility

Locations

Countries of recruitment

• Ireland

Study participating centres

Sponsor information

Funders

Funder type

Research council

Results and Publications

Study outputs

Editorial Notes

09/07/2024: Publication reference added.
22/08/2022: Publication reference added.
03/09/2021: The following changes have been made:
1. The recruitment end date has been changed from 06/09/2021 to 15/10/2021.
2. The overall trial end date has been changed from 14/12/2021 to 17/12/2021.
28/04/2021: Publication reference added.
05/03/2021: Trial's existence confirmed by Waterford Institute of Technology