A 10-week intergenerational program bringing together community-living older adults and preschool children (INTERACTION): a pilot feasibility non-randomised clinical trial

Mei Ling Lim; Christine Zammit; Ebony Lewis; Nicole Ee; Genevieve Maiden; Micah Goldwater; Eva Kimonis; Gail Kenning; Kenneth Rockwood; Anneke Fitzgerald; Katrina Radford; Hiroko Dodge; Stephanie A Ward; Kim Delbaere; Ruth Peters

doi:10.1186/s40814-024-01446-y

A 10-week intergenerational program bringing together community-living older adults and preschool children (INTERACTION): a pilot feasibility non-randomised clinical trial

Pilot Feasibility Stud. 2024 Feb 21;10(1):37. doi: 10.1186/s40814-024-01446-y.

Authors

Mei Ling Lim^{1

2

3

4

5}, Christine Zammit⁶, Ebony Lewis^{7

6}, Nicole Ee⁶, Genevieve Maiden⁸, Micah Goldwater⁹, Eva Kimonis⁶, Gail Kenning^{10

11

12}, Kenneth Rockwood¹³, Anneke Fitzgerald¹⁴, Katrina Radford¹⁵, Hiroko Dodge¹⁶, Stephanie A Ward¹⁷, Kim Delbaere^{7

11

18}, Ruth Peters^{10

6

11

19}

Affiliations

¹ Ageing and Neurodegeneration, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, Australia. mae.lim@unsw.edu.au.
² School of Population Health, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia. mae.lim@unsw.edu.au.
³ Ageing Futures Institute, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia. mae.lim@unsw.edu.au.
⁴ Falls, Balance and Injury Research Centre, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, Australia. mae.lim@unsw.edu.au.
⁵ Neurology, The George Institute for Global Health, Sydney, Australia. mae.lim@unsw.edu.au.
⁶ School of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
⁷ School of Population Health, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
⁸ War Memorial Hospital, Uniting, South Eastern Local Health District, Sydney, Australia.
⁹ Faculty of Science, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.
¹⁰ Ageing and Neurodegeneration, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, Australia.
¹¹ Ageing Futures Institute, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
¹² fEEL (felt Experience and Empathy Lab), University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
¹³ Department of Medicine, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Canada.
¹⁴ Department of Business Strategy and Innovation, Griffith University, Nathan, Australia.
¹⁵ Department of Employment Relations and Human Resource Management, Griffith University, Nathan, Australia.
¹⁶ Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
¹⁷ Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing, School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
¹⁸ Falls, Balance and Injury Research Centre, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, Australia.
¹⁹ Neurology, The George Institute for Global Health, Sydney, Australia.

Abstract

Background: Social isolation and low levels of physical activity are strong drivers for frailty, which is linked to poor health outcomes and transition to long-term care. Frailty is multifactorial, and thus an integrated approach is needed to maintain older adults' health and well-being. Intergenerational programs represent a novel multifactorial approach to target frailty, social isolation and physical decline but these have not yet been rigorously tested in Australia. Here, we present the results of our pilot study which aimed to test the feasibility of a 10-week intergenerational program between older adults and preschool children.

Methods: A non-randomised wait-listed controlled trial was conducted. Participants were allocated to either the intervention or wait-list control group. The intervention group received 10 weekly 2-h intergenerational sessions led by trained child educators; the control group continued with their usual routine and received their intergenerational program after the 10-week control period. All participants were assessed at baseline and 10 weeks. The primary outcome was the feasibility and acceptability of the program including measures of recruitment eligibility, adherence and effective data collection across the multiple domains important for frailty, including functional mobility and balance, grip strength, cognitive function, mood, social engagement, quality of life and concerns about falling.

Results: Nineteen adults were included, with nine in the intervention and ten in the control group. A total of 42% of older adults screened were eligible, 75% of participants were present at each intervention session and the overall attrition rate was 21% (n = 4). The reasons for participant absence were primarily health-related. Missing data was minimal for the majority of assessments but more apparent for the cognitive testing where completion rates ranged from 53 to 79% for baseline tests and 73 to 100% for those who received follow-up testing.

Conclusions: The high program compliance and low attrition show that a 10-week intergenerational program embedded in the local community, designed for community-living older adults and preschool children, is feasible and acceptable to older adults. Our next trial will test the efficacy of intergenerational programs in this setting.