COMMUNITY-BASED INTERVENTIONS TO IMPROVE HEALTH AND WELL-BEING AMONG OLDER ADULTS IN MALAYSIA: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.35631/IJEPC.1165010Keywords:
Community-Based Interventions, Health Promotion, Older Adults, Malaysia Well-BeingAbstract
Malaysia’s rapidly ageing population has increased the need for accessible community-based strategies that address the multidimensional health and well-being needs of older adults beyond conventional clinical care. However, evidence on community-based interventions in Malaysia remains dispersed across physical, cognitive, nutritional, psychosocial, and technology-supported programmes, limiting understanding of their characteristics, outcomes, and potential for wider implementation. This systematic review synthesised evidence on community-based interventions designed to improve health and well-being among community-dwelling older adults in Malaysia. The review was reported with reference to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) 2020 statement. Searches were conducted in Scopus and Web of Science using terms related to community-based interventions, health promotion, well-being, older adults, and Malaysia, supplemented by citation searching. Following screening, eligibility assessment, citation searching, and final refinement of the inclusion criteria, nine intervention studies were included in the qualitative synthesis. Three broad themes were identified: (1) targeted physical exercise and functional rehabilitation programmes (n = 3); (2) integrated multidomain and holistic lifestyle interventions (n = 4); and (3) digital health technologies and virtual delivery systems (n = 2). Across the included studies, favourable changes were reported in selected physical, cognitive, functional, behavioural, and psychosocial outcomes, although findings varied by study design, population, intervention, and outcome measure. Community-based interventions show promise for supporting healthy ageing in Malaysia, but the current evidence base remains small and heterogeneous. Larger multicentre studies, longer follow-up, greater consistency in outcome measurement, and stronger evaluation of sustainability, scalability, cost-effectiveness, and digital inclusion are required.
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