A quantitative assessment of the effectiveness of USDA's AgrAbility project.

BACKGROUND: There is evidence that the combination of assistive technology and education increases ability to live and work independently, which in turn increases the quality of life (QOL) levels of adults with disabilities. No previously published treatment-comparison group intervention studies were found with adult farmers and ranchers with disabilities. Knowing how effective USDA's AgrAbility Project is at increasing this population's QOL and independent living and working (ILW) levels will reinforce and inform change in AgrAbility and will provide outcomes for stakeholders and public decision makers to better address agricultural communities' needs.

OBJECTIVES: To assess whether or not AgrAbility is effective for enhancing QOL and ILW levels of agricultural producers with functional limitations and to assess intervention-comparison group differences.

METHODS: Intervention group participants (N = 225) included ranchers and farmers from 12 states with various disabilities who participated in AgrAbility. Comparison group participants (N = 100) from 17 states also included farmers and ranchers with various disabilities; they received no on-site visits or other AgrAbility services.

RESULTS: In this 10-year, 27-state study, AgrAbility participants reported statistically significant presurvey-postsurvey improvements in QOL levels (mean presurvey = 5.56; mean postsurvey = 7.13) while comparison group participants reported no change in QOL (mean presurvey = 5.10; mean postsurvey = 4.91). AgrAbility group mean ILW scores rose from 2.86 to 3.71 while comparison group mean ILW scores rose slightly from 3.24 to 3.50.

CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that AgrAbility was effective as compared with a no-treatment comparison group on improving QOL and ILW levels.