Implementation of a Community Based Public Health Buddy Program for Transportation-Disadvantaged Older Adults

Abstract

The research project aimed to determine whether a community-based “buddy” program that pairs college students with transportation-disadvantaged older adults could improve mobility and quality of life for older adults in Hillsborough County, Florida. In order to assess the efficacy of the buddy program model, developed in Phase I of the project, a presurvey was issued to 62 older adults, recruited from local senior activity centers. The pre-survey sought to establish a baseline for participants' access to community transportation and health resources, prior to pairing case group participants with trained college student volunteers. Each participant from the case group was matched with a trained volunteer, who, after interviewing their older adult “buddy,” identified relevant transportation and health resources for the participant. Following program implementation, post-surveys were issued to both study groups, with 43 of the total enrolled participants completing the study.