Chen Annie T, Chu Frances, Teng Andrew K, Han Soojeong, Lin Shih-Yin, Demiris George, Zaslavsky Oleg
University of Washington, Seattle, USA.
New York University, USA.
Gerontol Geriatr Med. 2021 Jan 9;7:2333721420985684. doi: 10.1177/2333721420985684. eCollection 2021 Jan-Dec.
There is a need for interventions to promote health management of older adults with pre-frailty and frailty. Technology poses promising solutions, but questions exist about effective delivery. We present the results of a mixed-methods pilot evaluation of Virtual Online Communities for Older Adults (VOCALE), an 8-week intervention conducted in the northwestern United States, in which participants shared health-related experiences and applied problem solving skills in a Facebook group. We performed a mixed-methods process evaluation, integrating quantitative and qualitative data, to characterize the intervention and its effects. We focus on four areas: health-related measures (health literacy and self-efficacy), participation, problem solving skills enacted, and subjective feedback. Eight older adults with pre-frailty and frailty (age = 82.7 ± 6.6 years) completed the study. There was an upward trend in health literacy and health self-efficacy post-intervention. Participants posted at least two times per week. Content analysis of 210 posts showed participants were able to apply the problem solving skills taught, and exit interviews showed participants' increased awareness of the need to manage health, and enjoyment in learning about others. This mixed-methods evaluation provides insight into feasibility and design considerations for online interventions to promote health management among vulnerable older adults.
需要采取干预措施来促进对处于脆弱前期和脆弱状态的老年人的健康管理。技术提供了有前景的解决方案，但在有效实施方面存在问题。我们展示了一项针对老年人虚拟在线社区（VOCALE）的混合方法试点评估结果，这是一项在美国西北部进行的为期8周的干预措施，参与者在一个Facebook群组中分享与健康相关的经历并应用解决问题的技能。我们进行了一项混合方法过程评估，整合了定量和定性数据，以描述该干预措施及其效果。我们关注四个方面：与健康相关的指标（健康素养和自我效能感）、参与度、运用的解决问题技能以及主观反馈。八名处于脆弱前期和脆弱状态的老年人（年龄 = 82.7 ± 6.6岁）完成了该研究。干预后健康素养和健康自我效能感呈上升趋势。参与者每周至少发布两次。对210条帖子进行的内容分析表明，参与者能够运用所教授的解决问题技能，而退出访谈显示参与者对健康管理需求的认识有所提高，并且乐于了解他人情况。这种混合方法评估为促进脆弱老年人健康管理的在线干预措施的可行性和设计考量提供了见解。
