Healthy ageing and occupational therapy in South Asian countries: a scoping review protocol.

INTRODUCTION

The increasing population of older adults is one of the most significant challenges faced by various countries across the world. South Asian region is accommodating almost a quarter of the world's population, with nearly 6% of them being >65 years of age. There is a lack of awareness regarding the role of occupational therapists in community settings, the assessments and interventions used by occupational therapists to facilitate healthy ageing among community-dwelling older adults. This scoping review is planned to systematically identify the literature from the last two decades, related to various assessments and interventions provided by occupational therapists to promote healthy ageing among older adults in South Asia.

METHODS

This scoping review will be based on the methodological framework given by Arksey and O'Malley and Levac and will include data from January 2000 onwards. The following databases will be included in the search-SCOPUS, MEDLINE (PubMed), Web of Science, CINAHL, EBSCO, Clinical key, Wiley Online, ProQuest and Cochrane library. Screening of titles and abstracts and full texts will be carried out by two reviewers independently in consultation with the third reviewer. Both quantitative and qualitative data will be analysed separately to identify the assessments carried out, interventions provided and factors that influence healthy ageing among community-dwelling older adults aged ≥60 years in South Asia. Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews will be used for collating and reporting the results.

ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION

As this scoping review uses data from already available literature, it does not require ethics approval. Results will summarise and present the existing literature related to healthy ageing among community-dwelling older adults. We plan to disseminate the results through a peer-reviewed journal, targeting occupational therapists, other rehabilitation workers and researchers from South Asia.