ABSTRACT

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of providing a home environment modification service with virtual-reality-based intervention for activities of daily living for community dwelling on the safety and prevention of falls of the elderly. Methods: This study provided services to 9 elderly people with chronic diseases living in the community. The program was provided over a total of 4 sessions, and home visits were conducted to evaluate and modify the residential environment. Daily life training was then conducted to adapt to the modified environment. In addition, the subject visited the center and trained daily life movements in a virtual reality environment. In addition, exercise prescriptions and coaches were provided as part of the intervention of daily activities. Results: The home safety and fall risk factors before and after the intervention improved from an average of 6.2 (SD ± 3.9) to 11.7 (SD ± 3.7) as a result of the Home Falls and Accidents Screening Test (HOME-FAST) (p = .00). In addition, the behavioral factors of a fall risk improved from 97.8 (SD ± 3.9) to 103.1 (SD ± 6.2) in the Falls Behavioural Scale (FaB) (p = .02), and the activity-specific balance confidence improved from 496.6 (SD ± 303.7) to 742.2 (SD ± 315.7) in the Activity-specific Balance Confidence Scale (ABC) (p = .02). By showing statistically significant differences before and after intervention in all evaluations of HOME-FAST, FaB, and ABC, this program was effective in preventing falls in the home, improving fall risk behavioral factors, and an improvement of balance confidence during a fall was confirmed. In addition, overall satisfaction with the home environment modification service of the mixed delivery model implemented in this study was found to be extremely high. Conclusion: It is expected that occupational therapy interventions will be effective for preventing falls and reducing safety accidents during daily life for community-dwelling elderly through a home environment modification service model combined with virtual-reality-based interventions for activities of daily living.