scholarly journals P052: Utility of data captured by transition referral forms for program evaluation and research

CJEM ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 20 (S1) ◽  
pp. S75-S75
Author(s):  
L.A. Gaudet ◽  
L.D. Krebs ◽  
S. Couperthwaite ◽  
M. Kruhlak ◽  
N. Loewen ◽  
...  

Introduction: Increase in functional decline of older adults after discharge from the emergency department (ED) has been reported; however, evaluations of interventions to mitigate this problem are infrequent. Data collected in the ED on older adults may document functional status, yet their utility for research is unknown. This study aimed to assess the usability of data collected by ED Transition Coordinators (EDTC) during routine assessments for functional decline research. Methods: EDTCs assess all patients 75 years old presenting to the ED and complete a standardized Transitional Assessment Referral (TAR) form that documents patients independence and daily functioning. To measure the utility of these forms for research purposes, trained research staff evaluated the TARs completed in April 2017 by TCs in the University of Alberta Hospital ED by extracting data from the TARs into a purpose-built REDCap database. Researchers selected and assessed for completeness and clarity the following variables unique to the TARs: facility vs. non-facility living, goals of care and personal directive, fall history, falls in the past 90 days, independence in 14 activities of daily living (ADLs)/instrumental activities of daily living (IADLS), community services in place, and homecare referrals for discharged patients. The proportion of TARs with data for each variable and the proportion of forms with unambiguous responses in each section are reported. Results: Overall, 500 forms were analysed; patients were 41% male with a mean age of 82 (SD=11.2). Homecare referrals, facility vs. non-facility living, and independence with 14 ADLs/IADLs were the most frequently documented variables (81%, 78%, and 79%, respectively); however for ADLs/IADLs, 59% of the 79% had one or more missing components. While fall history was reported in 301 forms (60%), only 107/301 (36%) reported the number of falls in the last 90 days. The referral to homecare variable was complete in 217/268 (81%) forms; however, 99% of files were missing data about goals of care, personal directives, and receipt of community services. Conclusion: Although some information on elderly patients is consistently reported, many of the social service/human factors associated with functional decline are not recorded. While data on the TARs may be useful for studying functional decline in the ED, exploring the barriers to form completion may improve adherence thereby increasing their research utility.

2020 ◽  
Vol 35 ◽  
pp. 153331752096087
Author(s):  
Kalpana P. Padala ◽  
Christopher M. Parkes ◽  
Prasad R. Padala

We present a case report to showcase that behavioral, cognitive, and functional decline may be associated with COVID-19 stay-home guidance among older adults with pre-existent cognitive impairment. In a functionally independent and physically active older adult with Mild Cognitive Impairment, there was worsening in depression and anxiety symptoms associated with the restrictions of COVID-19. Functional decline was also noted as assessed by Instrumental Activities of Daily Living. We discuss solutions to mitigate the effects of COVID-19 restrictions in this vulnerable population.


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 392-392
Author(s):  
Melissa Hladek ◽  
Jiafeng Zhu ◽  
Brian Buta ◽  
Sarah Szanton ◽  
Karen Bandeen-Roche ◽  
...  

Abstract Physical frailty is defined as a syndrome of decreased physiologic reserve conferring vulnerability to functional decline, mortality and other adverse outcomes in response to a stressor. One potential modifiable risk factor of frailty is self-efficacy, which is confidence in one’s ability to perform well at a task or domain in life. Self-efficacy is associated with improved health behavior and decreased chronic disease burden but has not been studied extensively in frailty research. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to evaluate a general self-efficacy proxy measure’s ability to predict frailty in a nationally representative sample of older adults using data from the National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS) collected from 2011-2018. 4,835 older adults (65+) were dichotomized into low and high self-efficacy groups using the one-item self-efficacy proxy measure in NHATS. The Physical Frailty Phenotype was used to assess frailty. A discrete time hazard model was used to obtain incident hazard ratios of frailty in two models. Model 1 was adjusted for age, race, sex, education and income. Model 2 contained Model 1 covariates and activities of daily living and co-morbidities. We found that low self-efficacy predicted a 41% increased risk of developing frailty over 8 years after adjustment for socio-demographics (P<0.0001) and a 27% risk of incident frailty after further adjustment for activities of daily living and co-morbidities (P=0.004). This study provides preliminary evidence that self-efficacy may be a key modifiable element to incorporate into multi-modal frailty interventions.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kate Valerio ◽  
Sarah Prieto ◽  
Alexander N. Hasselbach ◽  
Jena N. Moody ◽  
Scott M. Hayes ◽  
...  

The ability to carry out instrumental activities of daily living, such as paying bills, remembering appointments, and shopping alone decreases with age, yet there are remarkable individual differences in the rate of decline among older adults. Understanding variables associated with decline in instrumental activities of daily living is critical to providing appropriate intervention to prolong independence. Prior research suggests that cognitive measures, neuroimaging, and fluid-based biomarkers predict functional decline. However, a priori selection of variables can lead to the over-valuation of certain variables and exclusion of others that may be predictive. In the present study, we used machine learning techniques to select a wide range of baseline variables that best predicted functional decline in two years in individuals from the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative dataset. The sample included 398 individuals characterized as cognitively normal or mild cognitive impairment. Support vector machine classification algorithms were used to identify the most predictive modality from five different data modality types (demographics, structural MRI, fluorodeoxyglucose-PET, neurocognitive, and genetic/fluid-based biomarkers). In addition, variable selection identified individual variables across all modalities that best predicted functional decline in a testing sample. Of the five modalities examined, neurocognitive measures demonstrated the best accuracy in predicting functional decline (accuracy = 74.2%; area under the curve = 0.77), followed by fluorodeoxyglucose-PET (accuracy = 70.8%; area under the curve = 0.66). The individual variables with the greatest discriminatory ability for predicting functional decline included partner report of language in the Everyday Cognition questionnaire, the ADAS13, and activity of the left angular gyrus using fluorodeoxyglucose-PET. These three variables collectively explained 32% of the total variance in functional decline. Taken together, the machine learning model identified novel biomarkers that may be involved in the processing, retrieval, and conceptual integration of semantic information and which predict functional decline two years after assessment. These findings may be used to explore the clinical utility of the Everyday Cognition as a non-invasive, cost and time effective tool to predict future functional decline.


Author(s):  
Nicola Camp ◽  
Martin Lewis ◽  
Kirsty Hunter ◽  
Julie Johnston ◽  
Massimiliano Zecca ◽  
...  

The use of technology has been suggested as a means of allowing continued autonomous living for older adults, while reducing the burden on caregivers and aiding decision-making relating to healthcare. However, more clarity is needed relating to the Activities of Daily Living (ADL) recognised, and the types of technology included within current monitoring approaches. This review aims to identify these differences and highlight the current gaps in these systems. A scoping review was conducted in accordance with PRISMA-ScR, drawing on PubMed, Scopus, and Google Scholar. Articles and commercially available systems were selected if they focused on ADL recognition of older adults within their home environment. Thirty-nine ADL recognition systems were identified, nine of which were commercially available. One system incorporated environmental and wearable technology, two used only wearable technology, and 34 used only environmental technologies. Overall, 14 ADL were identified but there was variation in the specific ADL recognised by each system. Although the use of technology to monitor ADL of older adults is becoming more prevalent, there is a large variation in the ADL recognised, how ADL are defined, and the types of technology used within monitoring systems. Key stakeholders, such as older adults and healthcare workers, should be consulted in future work to ensure that future developments are functional and useable.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Muhammad ◽  
Shobhit Srivastava ◽  
T. V. Sekher

Abstract Background Greater cognitive performance has been shown to be associated with better mental and physical health and lower mortality. The present study contributes to the existing literature on the linkages of self-perceived income sufficiency and cognitive impairment. Study also provides additional insights on other socioeconomic and health-related variables that are associated with cognitive impairment in older ages. Methods Data for this study is derived from the 'Building Knowledge Base on Population Ageing in India'. The final sample size for the analysis after removing missing cases was 9176 older adults. Descriptive along with bivariate analyses were presented to show the plausible associations of cognitive impairment with potential risk factors using the chi-square test. Also, binary logistic regression analysis was performed to provide the relationship between cognitive impairment and risk factors. The software used was STATA 14. Results About 43% of older adults reported that they had no source of income and 7.2% had income but not sufficient to fulfil their basic needs. Older adults with income but partially sufficient to fulfil their basic needs had 39% significantly higher likelihood to suffer from cognitive impairment than older adults who had sufficient income [OR: 1.39; OR: 1.21–1.59]. Likelihood of cognitive impairment was low among older adults with asset ownership than older adults with no asset ownership [OR: 0.83; CI: 0.72–0.95]. Again, older adults who work by compulsion (73.3%) or felt mental or physical stress due to work (57.6%) had highest percentage of cognitive impairment. Moreover, older adults with poor self-rated health, low instrumental activities of daily living, low activities of daily living, low subjective well-being and low psychological health were at increased risk for cognitive impairment. Conclusion The study highlights the pressing need for care and support and especially financial incentives in the old age to preserve cognitive health. Further, while planning geriatric health care for older adults in India, priority must be given to financially backward, with no asset ownership, with poor health status, older-older, widowed, and illiterate older individuals, as they are more vulnerable to cognitive impairment.


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 325-325
Author(s):  
Erin Harrell ◽  
Nelson Roque

Abstract One modifiable risk factor of dementia is cognitive inactivity. Given cognitive ability is closely tied to continual performance of instrumental activities of daily living, cognitive training programs continue to be explored as a way to boost cognition and allow older adults to remain independent longer. While the efficacy of cognitive training is controversial, identifying activities older adults are willing to limit in exchange for cognitive training provides valuable information in relation to designing cognitive training programs that appeal to older adults. Using a qualitative approach, this study highlights activities older adults (ages 64+) noted as contributing to decreased gameplay of a cognitive training program on a tablet device. We found that respondents (61%) noted playing less as a result of entertainment activities (i.e., reading and playing games), social activities (31%) and travel (27%). Findings have implications for device form factor in administering cognitive training and other programs.


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 234-235
Author(s):  
Esha Chakravarty ◽  
Indrani Chakravarty ◽  
Ipsito Chakravarty ◽  
Prasenjit Bhattacharjee

Abstract Loss of balance and risk of falls is a major problem in older persons. Literature shows increasing use of yoga practices and dance therapy across Indian oldage homes and day care centres to improve balance and reduce risk of falls in older persons. Aim of this study is to evaluate the effects of dance therapy with focus on therapeutic movements derived from Indian classical dances on balance and risk of falls in older adults of Day Care Centres in Calcutta Metropolitan Institute of Gerontology, under Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Govt. of India. Total of 24 older adults across 2 day care centres participated in the study attending dance therapy sessions for 3 months. All of them self reported problems of balance and repeated falls alongwith difficulties in performing Activities of Daily Living. Twenty one of them were females and 3 males. The mean age of the participants was 75.5 years. Limits of Stabililty (LOS) was used to measure balance and pre tests and post tests were performed. Results showed that the Limits of Stability were significantly higher (17.5%) in older persons after participating in the dance therapy sessions. This study supports that dance therapy using movements derived from Indian classical dance forms can support older persons to function with reduced risk of falls, improved balance, safely carry out mobility tasks and perform better Activities of Daily Living . Further studies can show how dance therapy can facilitate healthy ageing and influence State policies on healthy ageing.


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