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Interest in Healthy Aging Interventions in Older Adults at the Heineberg Community Senior Center
Bergner, Michael Gagne, Jessica Goodfarb, Joshua Hanna, Lauren Hovan, Emily Leusch, Sofie O’Mara, Matthew Turner, Ashley
Bergner, Michael
Gagne, Jessica
Goodfarb, Joshua
Hanna, Lauren
Hovan, Emily
Leusch, Sofie
O’Mara, Matthew
Turner, Ashley
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Abstract
Background: Early recognition of chronic disease among older adults and emphasis on prevention and management strategies may benefit both individuals and the healthcare system. At The Robert Larner, M.D. College of Medicine, second-year medical students partnered with the Heineberg Community Senior Center (HCSC) to assess interest in a dance class designed to improve quality of life in older adults.
Methods: HCSC members were surveyed on interest in and ability to pursue a balanced diet (N = 33), and activity level and interest in attending a group dance class (N = 64). Descriptive statistics were used to evaluate survey data. A chi-square test of independence was utilized to assess the association between activity level and likelihood to dance. A p-value of <0.05 was set for significance. All analyses were conducted in Excel.
Results: Initial survey results showed that participants had a low interest in changing their eating habits. Our second survey evaluating interest in dance class participation showed a bimodal distribution, identifying low and high interest cohorts. The survey showed that socialization is the main motivation to attend HCSC. No significant association was found between an individual's motivation to visit HCSC for movement and desire to participate in a new dancing activity, using the chi-square test.
Conclusion: The main motivations for individuals coming to HCSC are socialization and movement. Our data represents a bimodal distribution of individuals with a range of interest in joining a new dance class. This data supports the introduction of a new dance class, with 25 participants reporting high interest.
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2026-01-28
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Heineberg Community Senior Center