CAN OCCUPATIONAL-THERAPY INTERVENTION PLAY A PART IN MAINTAINING INDEPENDENCE AND QUALITY-OF-LIFE IN OLDER-PEOPLE - A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLEDTRIAL

The main objective of this study was to see if older people could main tain their quality of life and independence after their homes had been modified and they were using community services as recommended by an occupational therapist. There were 167 study participants aged 69 to 9 4 years from the Northern Sydney Area, After being assessed at home by an occupational therapist, 105 were randomly allocated to one of two groups, to either have or not have the occupational therapist's recomm endations carried out, They were assessed again after six months, A th ird group did not require any intervention, This group was followed up by telephone and postal questionnaire at six months. The main outcome measures used were the Sickness Impact Profile, the Philadelphia Geri atric Center Morale Scale, the Life Satisfaction Index, assessment of Activities of Daily Living, the Health Assessment Questionnaire and ch ange in residence. After six months there were no difference in outcom es among the three groups. Most study participants remained at a satis factory level on each measure. Three people had died, One had moved to hostel care and one had moved to a nursing home. A further 14 from th e group having no intervention had withdrawn from the study, A seconda ry objective of this study was to indicate the responsiveness of these outcome measures to change in the short term (over six months) in an elderly population. Twelve-month assessments are in progress and may i ndicate what to expect from these outcome measures in the medium term.