Relationships Between Exercise Level, Beliefs About Exercise, And Exercise Promotion Among Cardiologists And Oncologists

Abstract

PURPOSE: This study examined the relationships between cardiologists’ and oncologists’ exercise levels, beliefs about exercise for their patients, and frequency of discussing or recommending exercise. METHODS: A survey was distributed to oncologists and cardiologists via Qualtrics. Questions and responses were: (1) “I believe exercise is safe for most of my patients, most of patients are capable of exercise, exercise is effective for improving my patients' well-being, and exercise can reduce likelihood of disease recurrence, or increase chances of survival in my patients (strongly disagree to strongly agree), (2) “How often do you discuss exercise with your patients?” (none/few, some, most/all visits), (3) “What percent of patients have you recommended should exercise in the past month?” (none/few, some, most/all), and (4) “How do you provide information about exercise” (referral as a yes/no option). Self-reported exercise was categorized at meeting exercise guidelines or not. Fisher’s Exact (FE) tests with Cramer’s V were used to compare the proportion of responses in each category between questions. RESULTS: Out of 154 surveys distributed, 58 (n=25 cardiologists, n=33 oncologists) were returned (37.7% response rate). Respondents were M=45.7±11.3 years old and 63.6% male. Those who agreed (vs. neutral/disagreed) with “…exercise can reduce likelihood of disease recurrence or increase survival…” were more likely to refer patients to an exercise program (FE=5.588, p=.040, V=.324). Cardiologists who agreed with the same statement were more likely to discuss exercise at most/all patient visits (FE=9.351, p=.027, V=.514). More than half (58.6%) reported meeting exercise guidelines, and there were no differences in beliefs about exercise for patients between those meeting vs. not meeting guidelines. CONCLUSION: Cardiologists and oncologists who believe exercise can reduce the likelihood of disease recurrence or improve survival for their patients, may be more likely to discuss exercise or refer patients to an exercise program. Beliefs about exercise did not differ by exercise level. These findings suggest that cardiologists’ and oncologists’ beliefs about the benefits of exercise for improving disease outcomes may be a viable path to increase exercise promotion.