Self-evaluation by community older adults on the applicability of the healthy beat acupunch exercise program

Objectives To evaluate the applicability of the Healthy Beat Acupunch (HBA) exercise program for older adults at community care centers and to explore their perceived impacts and suggestions for program protocol after six months of HBA exercises. Design & setting This prospective and descriptive study recruited 113 older adults from four community care centers. Intervention The HBA exercises were conducted 3 times a week, 40 min per session, for six months. Main outcome measures The program evaluation focused on four criteria: simplicity, safety, suitability, and helpfulness of the three phases of the HBA program using a 10-point ladder scale. The semi-structured interviews were focused on the participants' exercise experiences, perceived impacts on their health, and suggestions for the HBA program protocol. Results The average scores of the four criteria in each phase of the program ranged between 9.59 and 9.98 points. Participants reported an increase in their limb flexibility (n = 31) and that they were more relaxed (n = 26) and more energetic (n = 26) after engaging in the HBA exercises. Most of the participants suggested that the HBA program should be offered three times a week, 40 min per session, with 30 people in a group, and led by instructors who were professional, hardworking, easygoing, and enthusiastic, regardless of gender and age. Conclusions The HBA program was rated at a high level of simplicity, safety, suitability, and helpfulness by community older adults, which indicated that the program was considered as appropriate and applicable for the older population.