Occupation Based Health-Promotion Program for People Aged Over 60: "Bliib Gsund"

As in many other countries in the world, the population in Switzerland is growing older. This also means an expansion of costs in the health system. Therefore, the investigators need to find concepts of health promotion to prevent people from getting ill and dependent of the health care system. Our project aims at developing a health promotion program for persons over 50 years of age in a rural area of Switzerland. The program's name is "bliib gsund". This occupational-therapy directed health promotion program is conducted over a period of six months in two groups of eight persons each. The aim of the program is to enhance the quality of life of the participants, to mediate the competence of integrating health-promoting aspects in their daily life, and to maintain their independence in their life as long as possible. Persons over 50 often find themselves in a phase of transition in life, such as starting retirement, the loss of family members or children moving out. This program will provide them with the ability to continue their lifestyle in a more active way. It embraces topics such as more active pursuits of interests and carrying out personally meaningful activities. In preparation of the program, the investigators conducted a needs analysis to identify the needs relating to health-promoting offers of the inhabitants living in the specified region. The results showed a high interest and need for such programs. They also helped us to identify several relevant issues to be included in the presented health-promotion program: physical exercise in daily life, healthy nutrition, getting acquainted with new technologies, fall-prevention training and maintaining social contacts. The researchers and the designated occupational therapist, who will be the moderator of the program, can develop the program based on these results. The evaluation of the program should identify the effect of the program concerning the promotion of self-efficacy, the sense of coherence, qual