Research Reports (Original Article)
Effects of Health Education Intervention through Active Learning for Preventing Frailty in Older Adults
A Randomized Controlled Trial
2018 Volume 45 Issue 4 Pages 209-217
Details
2018 Volume 45 Issue 4 Pages 209-217
Purpose: This randomized controlled trial aimed to investigate the effects of health education intervention through active learning targeting frailty prevention for mental health, physical function, and lifestyle factors in community-dwelling older adults.
Methods: Eighty-four older adults were randomly assigned to health education intervention group versus the no-treatment control group. Intervention group attended a 90-minute active learning program about physical, nutritional, and cognitive activity once a week for 24 weeks. Active learning included exploratory learning, group work, and self-planning for behavioral change, which promoted healthy lifestyles. Outcome measures included mental health (Apathy Scale and Geriatric Depression Scale-15), physical function (gait speed, chair stand test, and grip strength), lifestyle factors (amounts of physical activity, dietary variety score, and self-efficacy for health promotion scale), and pre-frailty status based on Fried’s frailty phenotype.
Results: A total of 79 participants (94%) completed the study. Significant group × time interactions were observed for Apathy Scale, gait speed, chair stand test, amounts of physical activity, the dietary variety score, and self-efficacy for health promotion scale (p < 0.05). The rate of pre-frailty significantly decreased only in the intervention group.
Conclusions: This study suggests that health education intervention through active learning improves apathy symptoms, lifestyle, physical function, and frailty status, which can contribute to frailty prevention.
