Date Approved

4-2014

Graduate Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Nursing (D.N.P.)

Degree Program

College of Nursing

Abstract

According to the osteoporosis criteria developed by the World Health Organization, 10 million individuals residing in the United States are estimated to have osteoporosis, and 8 million of these individuals are women (National Osteoporosis Foundation [NOF], 2009). Educational and exercise interventions (Bohaty, Rocole, Wehling, & Waltman, 2008) have been developed in an effort to prevent osteoporosis. However, medical record reviews reveal that only 18% of patients receive counseling regarding osteoporosis educational interventions and exercise preventive measures during health care visits (Lee, Zuckerman, & Weiss, 2002).

The purpose of the pilot study was to examine the effectiveness of a 4-week, 4- session osteoporosis education and exercise intervention among a convenience sample of eight perimenopausal women at a community health club in west Michigan. Specifically, participant osteoporosis knowledge, self-efficacy, and health beliefs were evaluated preand post-osteoporosis educational and exercise intervention. The specific question that directed the study was, In a population of perimenopausal women, what is the effect of an osteoporosis educational and exercise intervention on osteoporosis knowledge, selfefficacy, and health beliefs?

The design of the study involved a one-group, pre-experimental, pretest, posttest approach to evaluate the intervention. The Health Belief Model (HBM) and Iowa model were utilized as the conceptual frameworks. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), Version 20 was used to analyze data. Demographic data were analyzed with descriptive statistics. The paired t-test was used to analyze the pretest and posttest data. Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient was utilized to determine associations among variables. The measurement instruments included the Osteoporosis Health Belief Scale (OHBS), Osteoporosis Self-Efficacy Scale-12 (OSES-12), and Revised Osteoporosis Knowledge Test (ROKT).

Statistical analysis of this preliminary study indicated that a 4-week, 4-session osteoporosis educational and exercise intervention increased osteoporosis knowledge among perimenopausal women in the health club setting. The intervention elicited a high self-reported confidence level regarding increased self-efficacy in nutrition and exercise along with health belief changes associated with susceptibility, benefits of exercise, benefits of calcium intake, barriers of exercise, health motivation, and total score. These findings suggested that an educational intervention and exercise practice for perimenopausal women increased knowledge and confidence regarding measures for preventing osteoporosis.


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