Abstract
Purpose: Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) oriented chair-based exercises are suitable for older adults living in long-term care facilities (LTC) due to their mild nature. However, their efficacy in different cultural environments was unclear. To address this question, a cross-country comparison study was conducted to test the treatment outcomes of a TCM-oriented chair-based acupunch exercise program, the Vitality Acupunch (VA), administered for both Eastern and Western samples.
Methods: This study adopted a longitudinal design to test the efficacy of the VA program for 80 long-term care older residents in Taiwan (n treatment = 23; n control = 17) and in the US (n treatment = 24; n control = 16). The 40-minute TCM-oriented, chair-based VA program was delivered to the treatment groups of both countries 3 times a week for 6 months. The inclusion criteria were older adults (1) age > 65, (2) lived in the facility > 3 months, and (3) had intact cognitive ability (a score > 8 on the Short Portable Mental Status Questionnaire). Physical fitness indicators (handgrip strength, upper/lower body strength, upper/lower body flexibility, shoulder joint mobility, and lung function) were measured at baseline and at 3 and 6 months of the study, to understand participants’ change over time. The analysis method of GEE was used.
Results: Findings showed that the Taiwanese treatment group improved most functional fitness indicators (all p < .01), except for lower body strength (Wald χ2 = 5.96, p = .051). By contrast, the US treatment group only improved handgrip strength (Wald χ2 = 25.65, p < .001). Findings on cross-country comparison further revealed that, compared to the US treatment group, the Taiwanese treatment group showed more improvements in lower body flexibility (Wald χ2 = 7.35, p = .007) and shoulder joint mobility (Wald χ2 = 5.85, p = .016).
Conclusion: The TCM-oriented, chair-based VA program as an effective exercise intervention for both Eastern and Western LTC residents in physical fitness improvement. The cross-country comparison suggested possible treatment response differences for different cultural samples, and the treatment seemed to favor the Taiwanese group. In all, the practical value of the TCM-oriented, chair-based acupunch program to frail older people living in long-term care facilities was supported, while the treatment response differences discovered in different cultural environments warrant further exploration.
Notes
References:
Boyer, S., Trimouillas, J., Cardinaud, N., Gayot, C., Laubarie-Mouret, C., Dumoitier, N., Rudelle, K., Druet-Cabanac, M., Laroche, M. L., & Tchalla, A. (2022). Frailty and functional dependence in older population: Lessons from the FREEDOM Limousin - Nouvelle Aquitaine Cohort Study. BMC Geriatrics, 22(1), 128. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12877-022-02834-w
Cordes, T., Schoene, D., Kemmler, W., & Wollesen, B. (2021). Chair-based exercise interventions for nursing home residents: A systematic review. Journal of the American Medical Directors Association, 22(4), 733-740. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jamda.2020.09.042
Kim, S. H., Kim, T., Park, J. C., & Kim, Y. H. (2022). Usefulness of hand grip strength to estimate other physical fitness parameters in older adults. Scientific Reports, 12(1), 17496. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-22477-6
Pišot R. (2021). Physical inactivity: The human health’s greatest enemy. Zdravstveno Varstvo, 61(1), 1-5. https://doi.org/10.2478/sjph-2022-0002
Tsoi, K., Lam, A., Tran, J., Hao, Z., Yiu, K., Chia, Y. C., Turana, Y., Siddique, S., Zhang, Y., Cheng, H. M., Wang, J. G., Kario, K., & HOPE Asia Network. (2023). The Western and Chinese exercise training for blood pressure reduction among hypertensive patients: An overview of systematic reviews. Journal of Clinical Hypertension (Greenwich, Conn.). Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1111/jch.14610
Vaidya, S. M., & Nariya, D. M. (2021). Handgrip strength as a predictor of muscular strength and endurance: A cross-sectional study. Journal of Clinical Diagnostic Research, 15(1), YC01-YC04. https://doi.org/10.7860/JCDR/2021/45573.14437
Sigma Membership
Lambda Beta at-Large
Type
Presentation
Format Type
Text-based Document
Study Design/Type
Other
Research Approach
Other
Keywords:
Long-term Care, Implementation Science, Interprofessional, Interdisciplinary, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chair-based Exercises, Aged
Recommended Citation
Chen, Kuei-Min; Murley, Brittany; and Chen, Szu-Yu, "A Cross-Country Comparison of the Vitality Acupunch Exercise Effects on Long-Term Care Residents" (2025). International Nursing Research Congress (INRC). 29.
https://www.sigmarepository.org/inrc/2025/presentations_2025/29
Conference Name
36th International Nursing Research Congress
Conference Host
Sigma Theta Tau International
Conference Location
Seattle, Washington, USA
Conference Year
2025
Rights Holder
All rights reserved by the author(s) and/or publisher(s) listed in this item record unless relinquished in whole or part by a rights notation or a Creative Commons License present in this item record.
Review Type
Abstract Review Only: Reviewed by Event Host
Acquisition
Proxy-submission
A Cross-Country Comparison of the Vitality Acupunch Exercise Effects on Long-Term Care Residents
Seattle, Washington, USA
Purpose: Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) oriented chair-based exercises are suitable for older adults living in long-term care facilities (LTC) due to their mild nature. However, their efficacy in different cultural environments was unclear. To address this question, a cross-country comparison study was conducted to test the treatment outcomes of a TCM-oriented chair-based acupunch exercise program, the Vitality Acupunch (VA), administered for both Eastern and Western samples.
Methods: This study adopted a longitudinal design to test the efficacy of the VA program for 80 long-term care older residents in Taiwan (n treatment = 23; n control = 17) and in the US (n treatment = 24; n control = 16). The 40-minute TCM-oriented, chair-based VA program was delivered to the treatment groups of both countries 3 times a week for 6 months. The inclusion criteria were older adults (1) age > 65, (2) lived in the facility > 3 months, and (3) had intact cognitive ability (a score > 8 on the Short Portable Mental Status Questionnaire). Physical fitness indicators (handgrip strength, upper/lower body strength, upper/lower body flexibility, shoulder joint mobility, and lung function) were measured at baseline and at 3 and 6 months of the study, to understand participants’ change over time. The analysis method of GEE was used.
Results: Findings showed that the Taiwanese treatment group improved most functional fitness indicators (all p < .01), except for lower body strength (Wald χ2 = 5.96, p = .051). By contrast, the US treatment group only improved handgrip strength (Wald χ2 = 25.65, p < .001). Findings on cross-country comparison further revealed that, compared to the US treatment group, the Taiwanese treatment group showed more improvements in lower body flexibility (Wald χ2 = 7.35, p = .007) and shoulder joint mobility (Wald χ2 = 5.85, p = .016).
Conclusion: The TCM-oriented, chair-based VA program as an effective exercise intervention for both Eastern and Western LTC residents in physical fitness improvement. The cross-country comparison suggested possible treatment response differences for different cultural samples, and the treatment seemed to favor the Taiwanese group. In all, the practical value of the TCM-oriented, chair-based acupunch program to frail older people living in long-term care facilities was supported, while the treatment response differences discovered in different cultural environments warrant further exploration.
Description
This presentation introduces the results of longitudinal research that investigated whether a traditional Chinese medicine oriented, chair-based acupunch exercise program, demonstrated different impacts on 80 long-term care older residents in Taiwan and the US. The outcomes of treatment and control groups from both countries were compared. Possible cross-cultural differences relevant to participants’ changes in physical fitness indicators over time will be further discussed.