A Systematic Review on Effectiveness of Online Well-Being Programs for The Physical and Mental Well-Being of University Health-Allied Students

Abstract

Aim: The study reviewed available literature on the effectiveness of online well-being programs concerning university health-allied students' physical and mental well-being. Methods: Following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and MetaAnalyses guidelines, this study involved searching for intervention articles for health-allied university students in the electronic databases of ProQuest, Herdin, Research Gate, ScienceDirect, Wiley Online Library, ERIC, DOAJ, CORE, PubMed, EBSCOHost, Google Scholar, Taylor & Francis, and Emerald Insights. The Cochrane Intervention Review guidelines became the basis for the results of the studies that met the quality criteria. For the other study designs, specific appraisal tools were used. Participants' characteristics, intervention parameters, and outcomes were extracted and synthesized for analysis. Results: Ten studies were included and reported in the study. All studies focusing on physical well-being (n = 2) reported significant improvements in physical activity with concurrent positive effects on mental well-being. Overall, studies focusing on mental well-being (n = 8) had mixed results on interventions providing statistically significant results. However, most studies either have practical significance ranging from mild to large effects, having a positive directional change for outcomes, or deemed helpful with a high participation rate. Conclusion and Implications: This review found evidence suggesting the effectiveness of online physical and mental health interventions for health allied university students. Interventions that encompass both physical and mental health are deemed the most effective.