Effect of Flourishing Promotion Program on Social Health in the Elderly

Background: Social health is considered of utmost importance as a social necessity. Thus, the Flourishing Promotion Program (FPP) can be effective in promoting social health. Aim: To determine the effect of the FPP on social health in the elderly. Method: A randomized controlled clinical trial of 60 elderly individuals residing in Toos Nursing Home and Salamati Nursing Home, Mashhad, Iran, was performed in 2017. The participants were assigned to intervention and control groups. The intervention group enrolled in the FPP for eight 90-minute sessions, and the control group only performed the routine activities. Keyes’ Social Well-Being Scale was completed before, as well as immediately and one month after the intervention. To analyze the data, Mann-Whitney U test and Friedman test were run in SPSS, version 21. Results: The mean ages of the control and intervention groups were 74.9±11.4 and 78.1±7.0, respectively. According to the Mann-Whitney U test, the mean score of social health in the intervention (57.1±6.3) and control (50.4±9.0) groups were significantly different before the intervention (P=0.001). Given the findings of the analysis of covariance, the mean score of social health in the intervention (67.9±5.5) and control (50.4±9.0) groups immediately post-intervention were also significantly different (P=0.001). Such a significant difference was also observed between the intervention (66.8±5.5) and control (49.3±8.7) groups one month post-intervention (P=0.001). Implications for Practice: The FPP could effectively enhance mental and social health and functioning in the elderly through providing a sense of belonging, positive excitement, and better interactions.