Depression and self‐esteem affects the health and quality of life of older adults who live in nursing homes. This study tested the effectiveness of art therapy activities on reducing the depression and improving the self-esteem of elderly living in long‐term care institutes. This was a quasi‐experimental study. A purposive sampling strategy was used to select 55 subjects who were aged 65 and above with intact mental functions and depression tendencies and currently residing in nursing homes in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. 29 subjects who participated in a selection of 12 artistic activities were assigned to the experimental group and 26 subjects who adhered to their ordinary activities were allocated to the control group. Structured questionnaires of the artistic group were used for data collection. The art therapy programs showed promising effects in improving the depression and self‐esteem of older adults living in nursing homes. Art therapy activities benefit the mental health of older adults. Incorporating artistic activities into social work care may help develop long‐term care into a more diverse, unique, and innovative direction.

Stimulating leisure activities are considered as possible protective factors against dementia and cognitive decline in older adults, particularly due to the enhancement of cognitive reserve. This study tested the effectiveness of board game activities improving the cognitive function of older adults in adult day care centers. This was a quasi‐experimental study. A purposive sampling strategy was used to select 82 subjects who were aged 65 and above with intact mental functions and currently residing in adult day care centers. 41 subjects who participated in a selection of 12 board game activities were assigned to the experimental group and 41 subjects who adhered to their ordinary activities were allocated to the control group. Structured questionnaires of the board game programs were used for data collection. The board game programs showed promising effects in the cognitive function of older adults living in adult day care centers. A possible beneficial effect of board game playing on the risk of dementia could be mediated by a less cognitive decline in older adults. Board game activities may benefit the cognitive function of older adults. Incorporating board game activities into social work care may help develop long‐term care into a more diverse, unique and innovative direction.

Most senior veterans who live in veteran homes in Taiwan have few interpersonal relationships. Aging is often accompanied by solitude and illness, which causes senior veterans to doubt the meaning of life and to lose confidence in the value of life. This study tested the effectiveness of a group reminiscence therapy protocol on the depression and meaning of life among elderly institutionalized veterans. A quasi-experimental design was applied. A convenience sample of older adults was drawn from two veteran homes in southern Taiwan. Participants were assigned to intervention or control groups based on the veterans' homes they attended. The participants in the intervention group carried out group reminiscence therapy for 8 weeks in addition to their daily activities. The participants in the comparison group maintained their daily activities. Both groups were evaluated using the GDS-SF and MLS scale including two aspects of depression mood and meaning of life in weeks 1 and 8. The overall life satisfaction increased significantly over time for the intervention group compared to the comparison group from week 1 to week 8. The group reminiscence therapy programs showed promising effects in improving the depression and meaning of life of older veterans living in veteran homes.

Personalized tongue pressure (TP) training focuses on improving swallowing. This study aims to establish the TP values of different age levels and compare changes between different swallowing status among community-dwelling elders. In this cross-sectional study, 1000 participants, aged 60 years old and above, were recruited from community care centers. All participants were classified into non chewing and/or swallowing difficulties (NCSD) and with chewing and/or swallowing difficulties (CSD) groups and their diseases and dieting status were recorded using a structured questionnaire. A disposable oral probe was used to measure TP by asking participants to compress it against the hard palate with maximum voluntary effort. Among 1000 elders, 63.10% had CSD and their TP (from 31.76 to 18.20 kPa) was lower than the NCSD group (from 33.56 to 24.51 kPa). Both groups showed the same tendency for TP decline with increasing age. Decline of TP makes CSD elderly have a poor appetite, eat a soft or liquid diet, and take longer to eat a meal (all p < 0.050). The secondary risk factor dominating TP decline for NCSD and CSD elders is having an education level less than primary school and an abnormal eating assessment, respectively. Our results demonstrated that TP decline has a significant relationship with age changes. Education level and an abnormal eating assessment score are closely associated with TP decline. A series of TP values can be used as a reference indicator of personalized medicine during the aging process among community-dwelling older adults.