Christopher Ball

UNC DPT c/o 2015

Community gardening programs, nature trails, and walking/hiking groups which take into account both intrinsic and extrinsic motivations for late-life leisure activity.32 Evidence indicates implementation of such interventions positively correlate with increased amounts of moderate-to-high level physical activity and improved overall health and emotional well-being of those who participate.32 The health promotion programs proposed for Mills-River have been both developed and formatted to be interdisciplinary oriented and to encompass multiple aspects of health and wellness simultaneously. Interdisciplinary programs are thought to be most beneficial in maintaining a high level of health and quality of life within underserved communities and work to combat socio- economic disparities in health-behaviors by offering a long-term recourse for the community of Mills-River and the older-adult population which reside there.33

## Program Description:

Outcome Measures

- • outcome measures (6-minute walk-test, BERG balance scale, Timed-Up and Go (TUG), • outcome measures (6-minute walk-test, BERG balance scale, Timed-Up and Go (TUG), 10-time sit-to-stand) will be completed for all participants at baseline (prior to first completed session) and one-year following program initiation.
- o those who sign-up for programs after the initial start-up period, community center o those who sign-up for programs after the initial start-up period, community center employees will be identified and trained in completing all functional outcome measures at time of sign-up.
- • participant-reported outcome measures of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) (SF- • participant-reported outcome measures of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) (SF- 36) will be completed for all participants at baseline (prior to first completed session) and one-year following program initiation
- • ordinal data (fruit/vegetable servings, caloric intake, incidence of falls, • ordinal data (fruit/vegetable servings, caloric intake, incidence of falls, frequency/intensity/duration of physical activity) tracked in an ongoing fashion via, activity-logs and dietary intake forms.
- o will be oriented to each form and instructed on accurate completion upon o will be oriented to each form and instructed on accurate completion upon initial sign-up period and subsequently reviewed during associated education sessions.

Objectives:

- 1. At one-year post implementation, older-adults of Mills River participating in the prospective health promotion programs will demonstrate maintenance of behavior change by demonstrating good to excellent adherence and compliance regarding health promotion interventions with participants attending at least 50% of sessions offered between community gardening and walking/hiking groups.
- 2. To prevent and reverse incidence of malnutrition and/or macronutrient deficiency, older-adults who participate in the Mills-River community gardening program will achieve the recommended daily intake of fruits and vegetables (5.5 servings per day) as well as total caloric intake (2000-2500 kcal/day)cc after one year of program implementation (2 growing seasons) as measured by participant subjective reporting.
- 3. At one-year post implementation of community gardening and walking/hiking groups, older-adult participants of Mills River will meet the recommended amount of physical activity per week through community gardening, walking/hiking groups or a combination of the two interventions with regard to intensity (moderate-high), frequency (3-5 times per week) and duration (20-30 minutes) to maintain and/or improve physical activity tolerance and aerobic capacity as indicated by 6 min walk-test