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Online Program

337721
Recruitment of older adults into fall-prevention programs in community settings: The role of referral sources


Monday, November 2, 2015

Shinduk Lee, MSPH, Health Promotion and Community Health Sciences, School of Public Health, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX
Samuel Towne, PhD, MPH, CPH, Health Promotion and Community Health Sciences, School of Public Health, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX
Yajuan Li, Agricultural Economics, Texas A&M, College Station, TX
Marcia Ory, PhD, MPH, Health Promotion and Community Health Sciences, School of Public Health, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX
Background: Falls are a costly public health problem threatening the health and independence of millions of older adults. Despite the effectiveness of community-based fall-prevention programs, recruitment of older adults into these programs remains an implementation challenge. A comprehensive understanding of the recruitment process of older adults into these programs is lacking. Additionally, past studies on recruitment of older adults seldom conduct a systematic examination of referral sources.

Objectives: The study objectives were to describe different types of recruitment sources and evaluate the effectiveness of various referral sources in recruiting community-dwelling older adults into fall-prevention programs.

Methods: Secondary data from a multi-statewide fall-prevention program project (May 2012-November 2013) were analyzed. Employing diverse referral sources, older adults (n=741) were recruited from Colorado, New York, and Oregon.  Surveys were utilized to collect baseline data about referral sources, demographics, health and health-related indicators. The participants recruited through different referral sources were compared using Chi-square tests and one-way ANOVA with Tukey’s Honestly Significant Difference test. 

Results: Approximately half (48%) were recruited from community-based organizations. Referral sources were significantly associated with participant characteristics in terms of age, health, and other health-related indicators (p<.05). Older adults who were recruited through recreation centers were younger and healthier than those who were recruited through health services systems or different media sources (p<.05).

Conclusion: The study highlights the importance of using appropriate referral sources for effectively recruiting the population of interest. Comprehensive examination of recruitment strategies can inform future translational public health studies with increasingly diverse aging populations.

Learning Areas:

Implementation of health education strategies, interventions and programs
Public health or related research
Social and behavioral sciences

Learning Objectives:
Describe different types of referral sources for recruiting older adults into community-based fall-prevention programs and evaluate effectiveness of various referral sources in recruiting older adults into community-based fall-prevention programs.

Keyword(s): Aging, Community Health Programs

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am a doctoral student studying Health Promotion and Community Health Sciences. I have participated in multiple research and service projects focusing on the implementation and translation of evidence-based programs for community-dwelling older adults.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

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