Poster Session
CONTEXT: Active and healthy ageing is a main objective in health programs. Adherence is a determinant condition to get the most of physical activity. There is increasing interest in the role that Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) may play to foster adherence. This innovative measure, however, finds the barrier of increasing illiteracy in people as they age, as representatives of the digital immigrant collective. Women may specially suffer that difficulty. OBJECTIVE: To assess the impact of an educational program on ICT on the acquisition of skills to use that technology. A sample of postmenopausal women of advanced age and medium-low socioeconomic class was evaluated. METHODS: A total of 184 women was invited to participate in a program designed to use smartphones as a tool to create virtual support groups, but only 80 of them decided to attend (43.47%). The virtual interaction between participants was assumed to improve the adherence to physical activity. PATIENTS: Postmenopausal women aged 55 or more from the province of Valencia (Spain). INTERVENTION: Training focusing on the acquisition of the basic skills in the use of smartphones. The content was divided into three main topics: WhatsApp, e-mail and Facebook. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Impact of the course was evaluated by an ad hoc designed questionnaire with 10 questions (yes/no). Knowledge status before and after the training was assessed. At the completion of the program, women were contacted by telephone and invited to answer the questionnaire, which was replied by 47 women (58.75%). RESULTS: Participants had a mean age of 62.98 ± 4.06 years (± SD). Most women were married (76.59%) and had received primary education only (63.82%). Statiscally significant improvement was observed in the total mean score (pre = 4.2 and post = 7.4, p =.018). Also, differences were observed when analyzing the different competencies. There was an acceptable acquaintance with social network competencies (WhatsApp), and little progress was consequently achieved in that area. The most notable changes were observed in the area of the use of e-mail (p = 0.009), probably because it was a most novel function. CONCLUSIONS: The impact of a training course on ICT technology in a group of medium-low socioeconomic level gave heterogeneous changes in postmenopausal women. The impact of that strategy in adherence to healthy lifestyle merits further evaluation.