Long-term evaluation of a health education programme for elderly persons with visual impairment. A randomized study

In order to implement evidence-based practice, a randomized study was set up to evaluate the ADL- based Health Education Programme 'Discovering new ways' for elderly persons with age-related macular degeneration.

To investigate the impact of this program on perceived security in the performance of daily activities 28 months after the intervention.

Two-hundred and twenty-nine persons randomized to either the Health Education programme or an Individual Intervention Programme participated in the study. At the 28-month follow-up there was a dropout of 98 persons and the results are based on 62 persons participating in the Health Education Programme and 69 persons in the Individual Intervention Programme.

There were statistically significant differences in perceived security between the groups in 15 out of 28 daily activities. Furthermore, the Health Education Group showed a significant tendency towards an improved level of security while the Individual Intervention Group tended to deteriorate.

The findings provide strong support for the long-term effect of the programme and for the implementation of evidence-based practice. The study corroborates the effectiveness of the Health Education Programme in enhancing security and hindering a progressive decline in perceived security in daily activities.