Aging in (a meaningful) place - appropriateness and feasibility of Outdoor Reablement in a rural Arctic setting

As populations age in the Western world, interventions aiming for 'aging in place', such as reablement, have gained prominence. Reablement programs have focused on enabling older people to maintain independence in their home environment. However, while a growing body of research points to the considerable benefits of engaging in outdoor environments, reablement rarely addresses outdoor activities. People living in rural Arctic areas often tend to have strong cultural, social, and emotional attachments to outdoor places, emphasizing the outdoors as a meaningful arena for engagement. Concurrently, rural Arctic communities face unique obstacles in facilitating outdoor activities, such as geographic isolation, limited access to services, harsh climate conditions, and seasonal variations. Recognizing these challenges, our study sought to tailor an outdoor reablement model that is appropriate and feasible for the context of a rural Arctic setting.

The study design was inspired by a co-design methodology, incorporating data creation through workshops, focus groups, and individual interviews conducted over an eleven-month period. Three municipalities in rural Arctic Norway were involved, with a total of 35 participants, including older people receiving reablement services and healthcare professionals. A socioecological theory supported the thematic data analysis.

The study yielded experiences that generated a comprehensive model for implementing outdoor reablement that meet the specific needs that the participants experienced in the rural Arctic setting. The model includes the individual level, accounting for physical and mental functioning; the organizational level, necessitating access to aids and equipment and cross-sectorial collaboration; and the environmental level, adapting to climatic, seasonal, and geographic challenges.

This study contributes with knowledge that broadens the scope of reablement as an initiative to support aging in place to include outdoor environments. The tailored outdoor reablement model developed in this study addresses the complexity of aging in place in rural Arctic settings. The study underscores the importance of context-specific strategies that support older people in maintaining a healthy and meaningful life through active engagement with the outdoors.