Nursing home residents benefit from volunteering

By Megan Rauscher

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Innovative programs that engage elderly long-term care residents in volunteer mentoring activities can have huge psychological benefits, research shows.

In a study of long-term care residents, those who participated in a volunteer activity -- in this case, mentoring conversational skills to English-as-a-second-language adult students on a one-on-one basis for 1 hour twice weekly for 12 weeks -- reported higher levels of well-being than those residents who did not.

In addition, the positive effect of mentoring on well-being "persisted at 3 months following termination of the program," Dr. Hon Keung Yuen, from the Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, who was involved in research, told Reuters Health.

In the study, 39 dementia-free long-term care residents (average age 83.4 years) who spoke English as a first language were randomly assigned to a "control" group who received usual care or to the mentoring program. Roughly 71 percent of the mentors were women.

Results of a global assessment test showed a higher level of well-being right after the program ended among the mentoring residents, and 3 months later, compared with the control group.

The research is published in the January/February issue of the American Journal of Occupational Therapy.

These findings support prior studies on the benefits of volunteering among older adults living in the community, Yuen noted.

Yuen and colleagues think long-term care facilities should "offer opportunities for residents to engage in volunteer activities," in addition to the social and recreational activities typically offered.

"Creating similar programs for older adults who are homebound may improve their physical and mental health," they conclude.

SOURCE: American Journal of Occupational Therapy, January/February 2008.