The Role of Horticultural Therapy in Improving the Quality of Life in Elderly People

Background and purpose: Aging is accompanied by a decline in quality of life. Horticulture is one of the activities that most elderly enjoy and can help preserve their physical and mental activity. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of horticultural therapy on the quality of life of elderly people attending daily care centers. Materials and methods: A quasi-experimental study was carried out with pre-test and post-test design in two groups of intervention and control in 60 elderly people in Sari, Iran 2017. In the intervention group, horticultural treatments were held in groups for 6 weeks in 12 sessions of 30-45 minutes. Quality of life was assessed using Leipad quality of life questionnaire before and after the intervention. Data were analyzed in SPSS V20 applying descriptive and inferential statistics. Results: The mean scores for quality of life in intervention group and controls before the horticultural therapy were 79.93±14.88 and 79.30±12.75 (P= 0.001) but after the intervention the scores were 86.03±11.87 and 80.36±12.54 (P= 0.001), respectively. In fact, horticultural therapy was found to significantly improve quality of life in intervention group (P = 0.001). Conclusion: The intervention was effective in improving the overall quality of life of the elderly studied. Therefore, it could be introduced as an easy, non-invasive, delightful, and helpful method.