Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38852950›Full record

ArticleKorean journal of family medicine2025

Effectiveness of an informal home care support intervention program to reduce loneliness and improve quality of life among lonely community-dwelling older adults: a feasibility study.

Ahmad Kousha, Elham Lotfalinezhad, Haidar Nadrian, Karen Andersen-Ranberg, Shannon Freeman, Fatemeh Barati, Hasan Mosazadeh, Mina Hashemiparast, Mohammed Asghari Jafarabadi, Ahmad Sohrabi and 1 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Korean journal of family medicine, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing papers in PubMed, 2 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

6 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
  3. Trial
  4. Article
  5. Article
  6. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Ahmad KoushaDepartment of Health Education and Promotion, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
Elham LotfalinezhadDepartment of Psychiatry and Community Health Nursing, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Golestan University of Medical Sciences, Gorgan, Iran.
Haidar NadrianSocial Determinants of Health Research Center, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
Karen Andersen-RanbergDepartment of Clinical Research, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark.
Shannon FreemanFaculty of Nursing, University of Northern British Columbia, Prince George, BC, Canada.
Fatemeh BaratiVice-Chancellery for Health, Shahrekord University of Medical Sciences, Shahrekord, Iran.
Hasan MosazadehDepartment of Psychology, Kazimierz Wielki University, Bydgoszcz, Poland.
Mina HashemiparastSocial Determinants of Health Research Center, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran.
Mohammed Asghari JafarabadiCabrini Research, Cabrini Health, Malvern, VIC, Australia.
Ahmad SohrabiCancer Control Research Center, Cancer Control Foundation, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Mohammad Reza HonarvarHealth Management and Social Development Research Center, Golestan University of Medical Sciences, Gorgan, Iran.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundEstablishing cost-effective informal care services for lonely older adults living at home in developing countries can be an innovative approach for improving their well-being. This study investigated the effectiveness of an informal home care support intervention program (HoSIP) reducing the loneliness and improving quality of life of lonely community-dwelling older adults.

methodsThis quasi-experimental pre-post study employed a non-randomized control group design with a 12-week intervention period and three follow-up points at the end of the HoSIP. Questionnaires were used to measure feelings of loneliness (20-item UCLA Loneliness Scale), quality of life (Control, Autonomy, Self-Realization and Pleasure Scale), general health (12-item General Health Questionnaire), social network (six-item Lubben Social Network Scale), social support (12-item Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support), and self-care ability (17-item Self-care Ability Scale for the Elderly). Repeated-measures analysis of variance was used to gauge the effect of the intervention program over time and in comparison to the control group. Data analyses were performed using the IBM SPSS Statistics software (IBM Corp.).

resultsWe found a significant relationship between the outcome variables, including feelings of loneliness (P<0.001) and quality of life (P<0.001), at different stages of measurement. Despite the positive feasibility results, the implementation of the HoSIP faced challenges due to a lack of facilities (e.g., place restriction for holding educational classes, educational facilities like computers, video projector, and whiteboard at daycare center) and the absence of supporting organizations.

conclusionUtilizing the existing capabilities of older adults to provide online and face-to-face care services can be a cost-effective way to improve their quality of life and reduce loneliness. The process of facilitating such informal care services for lonely older adults should be managed by either governmental or non-governmental organizations to reduce the rate of social isolation among this vulnerable population.

Indexed as

Home CareLonelinessOlder AdultsQuality of Life

Identifiers

PMID38852950
PMCPMC12127753

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.