The Associations between Technology Acceptance, Social Networks, Risk of Falls, and Physical Activity among Older People with Musculoskeletal Conditions during the COVID-19 Pandemic
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.60099/jtnmc.v38i01.259465Keywords:
Technology acceptance, Social network, Risk of falls, Physical activity, Older peopleAbstract
Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has had significant impacts on older adults including communication, social networks, physical activity, and adverse health outcomes, especially in those with musculoskeletal conditions who often experience mobility limitations. Technology has been utilized as an alternative approach to providing services during the pandemic. However, research on the use of technology in older people with musculoskeletal conditions is limited.
Objective: To describe the technology acceptance, social networks, risk of falls, and physical activity and to investigate the relationships between technology acceptance, social networks, risk of falls, and physical activity in older people with musculoskeletal conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Design: Descriptive correlation research
Methodology: A purposive sampling method was used to recruit a sample of 194 older adults aged 60 years or older with musculoskeletal conditions who had visited or received medical services through telemedicine at the orthopedic outpatient department of a university hospital in Bangkok. The study utilized several instruments, including a demographic questionnaire, the Senior Technology Acceptance Model 14-item scale, the Lubben Social Network Scale-Six items, the Fall risks assessment-Stopping Elderly Accidents, Deaths & Injuries 12-question checklist, and the Rapid Assessment of Physical Activity. The content validity index was .92, .93, .90, and .95, respectively. The reliability of the Senior Technology Acceptance Model 14-item scale and the Lubben Social Network Scale-Six items were .86 and .86, respectively, as determined by Cronbach’s Alpha. The Fall risks assessment-Stopping Elderly Accidents, Deaths & Injuries 12-question checklist and the Rapid Assessment of Physical Activity were tested by Cohen’s Kappa Coefficient, which yielded .67 and .92, respectively. Data were collected through structured interviews and analyzed using descriptive statistics and the Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient. A significance level of .05 was set for the analysis.
Results: The majority of the participants (96.91%) reported a high level of technology acceptance (M= 110.08, SD =14.39). More than half of the participants (61.34%) had no social isolation (M= 14.85, SD = 5.42), while 48.97% had an identified risk of falls (M= 3.81, SD = 3.10; Median = 3) and 96.39% had suboptimal habitual activity (M= 3.51, SD = 0.98). Correlational analysis revealed that technology acceptance and social networks had low positive correlations with physical activity, with a significant level of .05 (r = .167, r = .179, respectively). On the other hand, risk of falls had a low negative correlation with physical activity (r = -.163; p < .05).
Recommendations: Healthcare professionals, especially gerontological nurse practitioners, can apply this information to encourage the acceptance of technology and the development of social networks, as well as to assess the risk of falls among older adults with musculoskeletal conditions. By doing so, they can plan and provide nursing care that effectively promotes physical activity in this population.
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