Effect of Behavioural Model-Guided Nutritional Counselling on Old Age People’s Nutritional Status: A Quasi-Experimental Study Design

Abstract Background: Physiological, pathological, and socioeconomic changes occur in older people that could influence their dietary intake, efficiency of nutrient utilization, and nutritional status. Impaired nutritional status aggravates existing disease conditions and worsens their health problems. Appropriate nutrition assessment followed by timely intervention and regular follow-up improves the nutritional status and health outcomes of older people, which are lacking in Ethiopia. Therefore, this study was aimed to estimate the effect of behavioural model-guided nutritional counselling on older people’s nutritional status in Bahir Dar City, Northwest Ethiopia. Methods: A single-group pretest-posttest quasi-experimental design was conducted on 293 community-dwelling older adults aged 60 and above from January 28 to May 26, 2022. Trained nurses provided nutritional counseling guided by the health belief model and the theory of the behavioural model. The intervention was through home-to-home visits once a week for one month, with a two-month follow-up. Nutritional status, nutritional knowledge, dietary intake, body weight, and body mass index were measured. All measurements were recorded on a pre-post schedule, and the changes in outcomes were measured using a paired T-test. Results: About 34(12.5%) and 21(9.6%) of the study participants were malnourished, while only 87(32.1%) and 76 (34.7%) were normal before and after the intervention, respectively. The mean score of nutritional status significantly increased from 21.55 ± 3.72 before the nutritional intervention to 21.64 ± 4.12 after the intervention (x̄ = -0.30, t218 = -2.72, 95% CI: -0.52- (-0.83), p = 0.007). While, mean body weight and the body mass index did not change after the intervention’s adoption. The mean nutrition knowledge score rose from 7.58 ± 1.05 to 11.61 ± 1.37 (x̄ = 3.98, t218 = -32.79, 95% CI: -4.21-(-3.73), p < 0.001). Furthermore, the consumption of dairy products, fruits, and meat or egg intake increased after the intervention (p < 0.001). Conclusion: Behavioural model-guided nutritional counseling improved the nutritional status of community-dwelling older people. A participant-centered nutritional programme recommended improving the health of community-dwelling older people. Trial Registration: Clinical Trial Registration-URL: www.clinicaltrials.gov, identifier number: NCT04746664, first released 10/02/2021.