Development of physical and psychological functional fitness promotion program for community-dwelling elderly people who need long-term care

This study examined exercise adherence and effectiveness of physical and psychological functional fitness promotion program for the community-dwelling elderly people who need long-term care. The program consisted of a home-based exercise program and group learning on self-care for physical soreness and disability. Subjects were 29 aged persons (13 males; 75.8 ± 9.5 yrs, BMI 24.7 ± 4.1, 16 females; 73.9 ± 5.1 yrs, BMI 24.7 ± 3.1) in the intervention group and 16 aged persons (3 males; 77.3 ± 9.0 yrs, BMI 24.6 ± 1.3, 13 females; 78.1 ± 6.8 yrs, BMI 24.4 ± 3.4) in the control group. The exercise program was composed of 3steps. For the first step, the subjects learned to realize their physical soreness. The next step was learning methods of caring for their soreness. The last step was to improve the muscle strength. The classes were held twice a week over the period of 3 months. Information on functional fitness, grip strength, TMIG index of competence, geriatric depression scale (GDS) and self efficacy for health promotion scale were obtained using the standardized tests and questinnaire before and after the intervention period. Before the intervention period, the physical fitness level and grip strength in the intervention group did not significantly differ from those in the control group. The program adherence and class participation were 75.9% and 70.3 ± 29.0% at the end of the intervention period, respectively. The intervention group showed significant improvement in functional fitness and grip strength. The improvement of Self-Care working performance, grip strength, TMIG index of competence, and GDS score in the intervention group were significantly higher than those in the control group. These results suggest that the functional fitness promotion program composed of self-care exercise and group learning were effective for improving physical and psychological functional fitness level in community-dwelling elderly people who need long-term care.