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Dr. Kitsum Li, professor and doctoral capstone coordinator in ��������’s Occupational Therapy Department, has received a sixth year of funding from the Marin County Health and Human Services (HHS) and Aging and Adult Services to offer free Tai Chi classes for adults age 60 and older.

The ongoing program is a collaboration between �������� and Age-Friendly Sausalito to provide a gentle form of evidence-based exercise, Tai Chi, to older adults in Marin County. The exercises increase flexibility, strengthen muscles, and improve cardiorespiratory fitness in older adults suffering from arthritis. The exercises also improve fall efficacy, decrease chronic pain, and improve overall health-related quality of life in older adults at greater risk for falls.

Every year, up to six OT students are certified to serve as both Tai Chi for Arthritis (TCA) and Tai Chi for Arthritis and Fall Prevention (TCAFP) instructors. Once certified, the students, together with community certified instructors,  lead a series of five 16-session “Tai Chi for Arthritis and Fall Prevention” classes for about 130 older adults. The classes are offered November through July both in person and via Zoom.

Using pre and post-test surveys, Dr. Li and the OT students track the benefits of Tai Chi for participants in terms of fall efficacy, health status, quality of life, and pain interference with their daily activities. The OT team just completed the 5th year analysis, and the participants indicated significant improvement in all these areas.

Read more about the program here.

_{The grant is the Older Americans Act Title IIID- Health Promotion/Disease Prevention Program, Marin County Department of Health and Human Services and Aging and Adult Services.}