The USC Well Elderly Study

Drs. Clark and Zemke, Principal Investigators; Dr. Jeanne Jackson, Co-Principal Investigator (1997)

Findings include:

• It was the largest study ever conducted in the field of occupational therapy, including 361 elderly (age 60-89) residents of Los Angeles, and one of the longest, conducted over a nine-month period.
• A very culturally and racially diverse group was studied, including Caucasians, African-Americans, Hispanics and Asian-Americans -- some of the sessions were conducted in Mandarin. This diversity indicates broad application of the results.
• The study population was randomly divided into three groups - -one received occupational therapy, one engaged in social activities, and one had no treatment at all -- to ensure sound statistical analysis.
• The study focused on health changes in seniors from the occupational therapy group, who received weekly two-hour group sessions with a registered occupational therapist, along with an hour a month of individual occupational therapy and compared them to effects in the social activity control group, which met in 2 1/4 hour sessions weekly, but without professional guidance.
• After nine months, the occupational therapy program participants showed significant positive differences from both control groups. While control groups declined in all eight measured categories of health and well-being, the OT group advanced in five areas and declined significantly less in the other three areas.
• The group that participated in organized social activities showed no significant differences from the group that had no activities at all, showing that the cliche 'keeping busy makes you healthier'; may not be true.
• Although the majority of treatment sessions were administered in a group, individualization is key to the success of occupational therapy. The researchers write '...participants were asked to apply the concepts to their own everyday experiences' which 'enabled subjects to construct daily routines that were health promoting and meaningful given the context of their lives.'
• The occupational therapy group sessions were a cost-effective method of enabling the participants to maintain a healthier and more independent lifestyle. In the age of managed care and cost controls, adding preventive occupational therapy programs to health plans could pay big dividends.
• Preventive occupational therapy programs for seniors may delay reliance on more expensive nursing home care, and the consequent loss of independence greatly feared by the elderly.
• The research leads the way for a major shift in the profession of occupational therapy into the preventive realm, adding to its traditional focus on restorative treatment of people who are injured or ill.
• Results prove that occupational science -- a new academic discipline which was founded at the University of Southern California -- may make important contributions to public health though its examination of how daily activities contribute to physical and emotional well-being.

Does Occupational Therapy Provide a Health Advantage for Seniors? USC's Well Elderly Study Shows it Does.

Findings from Rand SF-36 Health Status Survey