Health Promotion Workshops for Seniors: Predictors of Attendance and Behavioral Outcomes

Abstract

The effectiveness of health promotion educational programs in enhancing the elderly's health status and health behaviors is dependent upon their willingness to participate in such programs. Identification of factors that predict their participation is therefore essential. Of equal importance is determining which components of health promotion programs result in enhanced health status through modified health behaviors in order to design future programs for maximum effectiveness. The research reported here focuses on the use and effect of health promotion educational workshops designed to enhance both the physical and psychological well-being of a Medicare Health Maintenance Organization population. Sixty-seven percent of eligible participants attended five or more health promotion workshops, while 14 percent failed to attend one workshop. A multivariate regression analysis revealed increasing age and smoking behavior as significant predictors of absenteeism in this group. Limited behavioral changes were observed as a direct result of the workshops. Those attending at least 75 percent of the mental health workshops demonstrated a significant increase in their ability to cope with and tolerate stress after one year. Workshop attendance did not significantly impact any of the physical outcomes included in the analysis. This investigation demonstrates the difficulty in predicting which elderly are most likely to participate initially and which will continue to participate in such activities. Results also suggest that the impact of these types of workshops on changing health behaviors is limited, even among those individuals who attend most or all workshops.