Effects of Agro-healing Program on Hand Function, Grip Strength, and Activities of Daily Living Skills of People with Developmental Disabilities

Abstract

Background and objective: Agro-healing (care farming) has developed into a new professional area belonging to the field of social horticulture. Agro-healing programs are horticultural activities that serve as social rehabilitation training for the therapeutic treatment of physical and mental disorders, and have caught the attention of scholars in the area of medicine and psychology. Developmental disabilities reduce cognitive function; people with developmental disabilities (PDD) have difficulties in establishing social relationships due to their low visual, hearing, and emotional functions. This study aimed to apply a agro-healing program to PDD and suggest clinical rehabilitation therapy methods for them. Methods: This study selected 32 people who understood its purpose and agreed to participate in the program from April to July 2022 at P Lifelong Education Academy in Wanju-gun and H Developmental Rehabilitation Center in Jeonju-si. There were 15 subjects in the experimental group and 17 in the control group. Pre-test and post-test were conducted to assess hand function, grip strength, and activities of daily living. The results were statistically analyzed using SPSS version 18.0. Results: In the area of upper extremity function, the agro-healing program significantly improved the ability of both hands (right and left) in the experimental group. Within this group, both hands were showed significantly improvement in the the hand function skills of picking up small common objects. Improvement in activities of daily living skills were also statistically significant in the experimental group. Conclusion: In this study, it was confirmed that when a agro-healing program was applied to PDD, it had positive effects on their hand function, grip strength, and activities of daily living skills. It is expected that this can be fully utilized in clinical approaches to rehabilitation therapy for PDD.