The Effect of Horticultural Program on Cognitive Function, Activities of Daily Living(ADL) and Hand Grip Strength of Institutionalized Dementia Patients
PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of use of a horticultural program on the cognitive function, activities of daily living, and hand grip strength of institutionalized dementia patients. METHOD: Twenty three study participants completed a five week protocol comprised of one week of baseline and four weeks of treatment. The study design was a one group repeated measurement study. For the first and fifth week of the study period, data was collected with 3 instruments: Korean Version of Hasegawa Dementia Scale (HDS-K), Katz's ADL index, hand grip strength. Data analysis was conducted by SPSS version 10.0. RESULTS: Total HDS-K score(p=.000), Activities of daily living(p=.013) and hand grip strength(p=.001) was significantly improved after treatment compared to the baseline. CONCLUSION: The horticultural program was effective for improving cognitive function, ADL and hand grip strength of the dementia patients. Repeated studies utilizing a control group are needed, using various durations, plants and processes, to confirm these results and to standardize the horticultural program protocol.
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