title: Healthy lifestyles through an Adaptive Living Program: a pilot study.
abstract: This study examined the effects of an Adaptive Living Program (ALP) on quality of life and life satisfaction of 19 low-income adults living in a city-subsidized apartment complex in Michigan. The ALP included 12 modules and three community outings over a 12-week period, two times a week, with each session lasting 1.5 hours. Occupational therapy students conducted the groups under faculty supervision. The RAND SF-36 and a non-standardized tool were used to collect data. Results obtained from the participants' RAND SF-36 pre-test and post-test scores demonstrated no significant difference in the physical, social and emotional health variables. Qualitative information gathered in a 60-minute semi-structured focus group held on the final day of the programme indicated that participants reported that they had increased their quality of life and life satisfaction through developing better social skills, increased knowledge of nutrition and improved interpersonal skills. Methodological limitations included a small sample, limited ethnic population, occasional absences during the group sessions, abbreviated length of programme and application of a non-standardized assessment. Recommendations include a larger sample size of diverse ethnic population with varying ages, an established cut-off date for new evaluations, a lengthened programme, a standardized qualitative questionnaire and alternative quantitative assessment.
authors.affiliation: Crystal M. Lange College of Nursing and Health Sciences, Saginaw Valley State University, University Center, Michigan 48710, USA. mlbarne1@svsu.edu
authors.forename: Meghan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Barnes
authors.forename: Kim
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Bigari
authors.forename: Tiffany
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Culler
authors.forename: Heather
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Gregory
authors.forename: Julienne
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hamilton
authors.forename: Stacy
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Krawczyk
authors.forename: Donald
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Earley
authors.forename: Ellen
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Herlache
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006266:Health Education / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D008019:Life Style; D008297:Male; D008824:Michigan; D008875:Middle Aged; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011203:Poverty; D016730:Program Development; D015397:Program Evaluation; D011788:Quality of Life