Health Web 1.0: A Web-based Occupational Therapy Group Intervention for Older Adults

The demographic changes associated with a growing ageing population worldwide imply a need for a shift in the health and social care system and a need for new innovations and interventions to support active and healthy ageing. Important aspects of healthy ageing, emphasized by the World Health Organization (WHO), are possibilities for social participation and the ability to create and maintain social relationships. In Sweden, there is an ongoing transition in the health care system towards personalized and integrated care, in which people are encouraged to take greater responsibility for their health. Additionally, digital solutions have been identified as an opportunity to offer new interventions to meet the needs of this transition. For professionals such as occupational therapists, this implies a need to increase the use of new digital interventions that address healthy ageing and support social participation. According to occupational therapy research, digital technology has the potential to support older adults' social participation and reduce experiences of loneliness. Thus, developing health promotion interventions that support the development of strategies for social participation when ageing is an important concern within occupational therapy. To address this background, a web-based occupational therapy group intervention, the Health Web, has been developed, with a focus on strategies for social participation and meaningful activities in daily life to support healthy ageing.

This feasibility study will be conducted using a pretest and posttest design without a control group to evaluate feasibility and potential results. Qualitative and quantitative data will be collected concurrently in a convergent mixed-method design. The combination of data provides enables a comprehensive evaluation of feasibility. Health Web 1.0 is a health promoting intervention targeting older adults 65+ and is delivered by Occupational Therapists in municipality primary healthcare settings in northern Sweden. This feasibility study provides important information to further evaluate and refine the intervention programme prior to larger-scale testing.