EFFECTS OF ADULT DAY CARE SERVICES ON DISABILITY IN OLDER PERSONS: EVALUATION OF A DESIGNED SERVICE PACKAGE IN IRAN

Objective: To assess the effects of a rehabilitation service package designed by the State Welfare Organization of Iran for adult day care centres on the disability of older clients. Methods: A case-control study, with 46 older participants in the case group and 46 participants, matched for level of disability, in a control group. The World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule 2 was used to collect data at 4 time-points: baseline and 2, 4, and 6 months later. Data were analysed using repeated-measures analysis of variation. Results: The rehabilitation service package had significant effects on the disability scores of older users of day care services. The disability scores significantly changed within the subjects (p=0.010) and between the 2 groups (p<0.001). Within-subjects effects in all 6 domains ("understanding and communication" (p=0.002), "getting around" (p=0.046), "self-care" (p<0.001), "getting along with people" (p<0.001), "life activity" (p<0.001) and "participation" (p<0.001)) and between-subjects effects, in all except the "self-care" domain, showed significant differences during the 6-month study period (p=0.003, p<0.001, p<0.001, p<0.001, and p<0.001, respectively). Conclusion: The adult day care service package may have a positive role in decreasing measures of disability among older persons over a 6-month period.