Holistic Wellness Coaching for Older Adults: Preliminary Evidence for a Novel Wellness Intervention in Senior Living Communities

Abstract

Although resident wellness is increasingly a priority in senior living communities, there are few programs that promote holistic wellness in later life. A total of 79 residents (ages 71 to 97; M = 84.27, SD = 6.46) from eight senior living communities completed a pilot study of a novel, staff-led wellness coaching program consisting of resident-driven goals and individual and group coaching sessions. Participants completed surveys at three time points (pre-program, post-program, and 1-month follow-up). Repeated measures ANOVAs revealed positive changes in resident health satisfaction, physical quality of life (QOL), psychological QOL, loneliness, relatedness, competence, and sense of purpose. Some of these results (i.e., psychological QOL, loneliness) persisted at follow-up. Residents reported high satisfaction with the program. These findings have implications for the application of holistic wellness frameworks in later life, as well as the development and implementation of wellness coaching programs with older adults.

Keywords

wellness coaching holistic wellness retirement well-being wellness programming

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