Community rehabilitation for older people: day hospital or home-based services?

A physiotherapy-led transition to home intervention for older adults following emergency department discharge: protocol for a pilot feasibility randomised controlled trial

Background

Older adults frequently attend the emergency department (ED) and experience high rates of adverse outcomes following ED presentation including functional decline, ED re-presentation and unplanned hospital admission. The development of effective interventions to prevent such outcomes is a key priority for research and service provision. This paper reports a protocol designed to evaluate the feasibility of conducting a three arm randomised controlled trial (RCT) within the ED setting and in the patient’s home. The interventions are comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA), ED PLUS and usual care.

Methods

The ED PLUS pilot trial is designed as a feasibility RCT conducted in the ED and Acute Medical Assessment Unit of a university teaching hospital in the mid-west region of Ireland. We aim to recruit 30 patients, aged 65 years and over presenting to the ED with undifferentiated medical complaints and discharged within 72 h of index visit.

Patients will be randomised by a computer in a ratio of 1:1:1 to deliver usual care, CGA or ED PLUS during a 6-month study period. A randomised algorithm is used to perform randomization. CGA will include a medical assessment, medication review, nursing assessment, falls assessment, assessment of mobility and stairs, transfers, personal care, activities of daily living (ADLs), social supports and baseline cognition. ED PLUS, a physiotherapist led, multidisciplinary intervention, aims to bridge the transition of care between the index visit to the ED and the community by initiating a CGA intervention in the ED and implementing a 6-week follow-up self-management programme in the patient’s own home following discharge from the ED. The outcomes will be parameters of the feasibility of the intervention and trial methods and will be assessed quantitatively and qualitatively.

Discussion

Rising ED visits and an ageing population with chronic health issues render ED interventions to reduce adverse outcomes in older adults a research priority. This feasibility RCT will generate data and experience to inform the conduct and delivery of a definite RCT.

Trial registration

The trial was registered in Clinical Trials Protocols and Results System as of 21^st July 2021, with registration number NCT049836020.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s40814-021-00954-5.

The feasibility and effectiveness of internet-based rehabilitation for patients with knee osteoarthritis: A study protocol of randomized controlled trial in the community setting

BACKGROUND

Internet-based rehabilitation can ease the progression of chronic diseases. There had been studies on internet-based rehabilitation of knee osteoarthritis (OA), but them were conducted at home and ignored the potential benefits in the community setting. This study will explore the feasibility and effectiveness of internet-based rehabilitation accompanies wearable devices in the community setting for the patients with knee OA.

METHODS

An assessor-blinded randomized controlled feasibility trial will be performed to study the feasibility and effectiveness of internet-based rehabilitation program for the patients with knee OA in the community setting. Forty participants with knee OA will be recruited and randomly allocated into internet-based rehabilitation group (IRG) or control group (CG). The interventions of IRG will be performed in the community setting via web-based platform and wearable devices. The outcome measures will be conducted at baseline, and post-intervention 6 weeks, 12 weeks during the study. The feasibility will be tested by the proportion of participants who will complete the internet-based rehabilitation program within 12 weeks in IRG as well as the compliance and satisfaction. Additionally, the effectiveness of internet-based rehabilitation will be assessed by the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index, 11-point Numerical Rating Scale and Short Form-36 quality-of-life questionnaire.

CONCLUSION

The internet-based rehabilitation program and community-based interventions is feasible and efficacy to ameliorate the osteoarthritic pain and promote the physical function and quality of life for the patients with knee OA in the community setting.

TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER

The study was registered in the clinical trial registry ChiCTR2000033397.

Professional identity in community care: The case of specialist physicians in outpatient services in Italy

Due to changes in social and health needs, the reorganisation of health systems towards community and primary care requires the redefinition of different professional identities and practices. This paper focuses on the specialists in the system: the physicians who work in outpatient services (local health authorities, hospitals, and other institutions) not as dependents but under private contract. This doctor has to balance the professional culture (in terms of autonomy and indipendence of judgment) with the bureaucratic logic that rules the organisations for which he or she works. Our research objective was to identify the identity variables characterising the specialist doctor ("ideal profile") and analyse the extent to which these differed from the doctor's actual identity ("actual profile"). From a methodological perspective, 1) we used a consensus method approach to identify the variables that define the specialist's identity, and 2) using a national web survey, we checked the distance between such characteristics and these professionals' actual identities. Involving different experts in the field of primary care, we identified 27 identity variables that appear to be at the core of specialist expertise. We then asked a representative sample of specialists to indicate how important and feasible these variables were in their work contexts and identified four main factors characterising their identities. The results demonstrate that, among experts, there is a clear perception of the need to build an identity that is linked to integration and to adopt a heuristic approach through teamwork and networking. However, this differs considerably from the logic of the specialists working in outpatient services: What emerges is the perceived difficulty of operational translation due to organisational problems or, otherwise, the constitutive elements of professional identity.

Rehabilitation agency of older adults in group-based intervention

AIMS

This study investigated the individual rehabilitation agency of older adults in a one-year group-based gerontological rehabilitation context. Here, rehabilitation agency is understood as being manifested when older adults make choices and decisions regarding their everyday lives, including notions of themselves.

METHODS

The data were obtained via non-participant observation of the final individual goal evaluation sessions of 38 older adults with their personal counselor. In these sessions, older adults discussed their rehabilitation outcomes, actions, choices and decisions during the rehabilitation year, along with their future in home settings. The data were analyzed using qualitative content analysis and an agency-centred approach.

FINDINGS

The findings revealed that older adults made choices and decisions differently concerning their life in and beyond the rehabilitation context. Four forms of rehabilitation agency of older adults were identified: (i) renewable, (ii) widened, (iii) selective and (iv) fractured. These forms of agency were differently connected to older adults' life courses and to their peer relations in the rehabilitation context.

CONCLUSIONS

An agency-centred approach could produce new theoretical ideas and practical implications for developing older adults' rehabilitation to better meet their needs as well as the goals of group-based rehabilitation interventions.

A multiple case study of patient journeys in Wales from A&E to a hospital ward or home

The health service is having to plan for an increasingly older population putting extra demand on services, with a greater emphasis on providing care at home. A health board in Wales brought in an Early Response Service, which assessed whether patients attending accident and emergency needed to be admitted to hospital or could receive care at home. This qualitative study looked at the experiences of both patients and staff members in both settings. A multiple case study was undertaken using semi-structured interviews. The theoretical framework was derived from Kolcaba's comfort theory and the bio-psycho-social model. Staff were identifying the most suitable patients for care at home and all hospital admissions were necessary, as the patients required greater medical/surgical intervention than those cared for at home.

Nutritional and Functional Status in Geriatric Day Hospital Patients - MNA Short Form Versus Full MNA

OBJECTIVES

The aims of this study were to determine the prevalence of malnutrition in patients of a geriatric day hospital using the Mini Nutritional Assessment short form (MNA-SF) and the full MNA, to compare both tools, and to examine the relationship between nutritional and functional status.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional study.

SETTING

Geriatric day hospital.

PARTICIPANTS

190 patients (72.1% female, median 80 years) aged 65 years or older.

MEASUREMENTS

In consecutively admitted geriatric day hospital patients nutritional status was assessed by MNA-SF and full MNA, and agreement between both tools calculated by Cohen´s kappa. Basic activities of daily living (ADL), instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) and short physical performance battery (SPPB) were determined and related to MNA categories (Chi2-test, Mann-Whitney-U-test).

RESULTS

36.3 % and 44.7% of the patients were at risk of malnutrition, 8.9 % and 5.8 % were malnourished according to MNA-SF and full MNA, respectively. Agreement between both MNA forms was moderate (κ=0.531). No significant associations between MNA-SF and ADL, IADL and SPPB, and between full MNA and SPPB were observed. According to full MNA, the proportion of patients with limitations in ADL and IADL significantly increased with declining nutritional status (ADL: 2.1 vs. 8.2 vs. 18.2 %, p=0.044; IADL: 25.5 vs. 47.1 vs. 54.5 %, p=0.005) with a simultaneous decrease of the proportion of patients without limitations. Well-nourished patients reached significantly higher ADL scores than patients at risk of malnutrition (95 (90-100) vs. 95 (85-100), p=0.005) and significantly higher IADL scores than patients at risk or malnourished (8 (6-8) vs. 7 (5-8) vs. 6 (4-8), p=0.004).

CONCLUSION

The high prevalence of risk of malnutrition and the observed association between functional status and nutritional status according to full MNA call for routine nutritional screening using this tool in geriatric day hospital patients.

Effectiveness of 'rehabilitation in the home' service

Objectives Rehabilitation in the home (RITH) services increasingly provide hospital substitution services. This study examines clinical outcomes in a large metropolitan RITH service in Western Australia. Methods The 2010 database of Fremantle Hospital RITH service was interrogated to identify the clinical profile of cases, length of stay (LOS) and clinical outcomes. Negative outcomes included death or unexpected hospital readmission. Multiple logistic regression modelling was used to explore associations with negative outcomes. This study was reviewed by the Institutional Review Board which deemed it not to require ethics approval. Results There were 1348 cases managed by RITH: 70.6% were aged ≥ 65 years; elective joint replacement (29.7%), medical conditions (20%), stroke (13%), hip fractures (10%) were major contributors. The majority (93.3%) were discharged after a median of 9 days. Negative outcomes occurred in 90 cases (6.7%), including five deaths (0.4%) and 85 readmissions (6.3%). Independent associations with negative outcomes included older age (odds ratio (OR) (95% CI); 1.02, P = 0.006), orthopaedic conditions (OR 1.91, P = 0.004) and longer inpatient LOS (OR 1.96, P = 0.003). Age above 80 years was independently associated with risk of negative outcome (OR 2.99, P = 0.004). Conclusions RITH had a low rate of negative outcomes. The database proved useful for monitoring quality of service provision. What is known about the topic? Rehabilitation in the home environment has proven cost effective for multiple conditions, particularly stroke and elective joint surgery, among others, facilitating better quality of life, with reduced rates of delirium and mortality. Overall there are few negative outcomes and death is rare. What does this paper add? Although RITH services are widely utilised as bed substitution services, there is scant literature on clinical outcomes while within the service. This study focuses on frequency of good and poor clinical outcomes in a well-established RITH service in Western Australia, suggesting pattern recognition of an at-risk cohort by identifying potentially useful predictors of poor outcome. What are the implications for practitioners? RITH services are a safe alternative for many, including older people. Health administration databases are useful tools to monitor clinical outcomes. Clinical indicators such as older age, long hospital stay and orthopaedic diagnoses may be useful predictors of poor outcomes in such services.

A quasi-experimental study on a new service option for short-term residential care of older stroke patients

We conducted a quasi-experimental study to compare the effectiveness of a new short-term residential care option for stroke rehabilitation with that of usual day hospital care. Primary data were collected from stroke patients and their caregivers from June 2009 to May 2012. New service option users and their caregivers were recruited for the intervention group, while users of usual public geriatric day hospital care and their caregivers were recruited for the control group. The primary outcome measures were Modified Barthel Index (MBI) and Mini-Mental Status Examination (MMSE) scores. Trained research assistants assessed the outcome measures at the beginning of the rehabilitation program (baseline) and at a 4-month follow-up. Sixty and 128 stroke patients were recruited for the intervention and control groups, respectively; 50 and 105 participants, respectively, completed the 4-month follow-up. At 4-month follow-up, the intervention group had an increased MBI score of 15.3 (95% confidence interval [CI] 10.8–19.8) and an MMSE score of 1.3 (95% CI 0.4–2.1). In comparison, the control group had an increased MBI score of 13.3 (95% CI 9.7–16.8) and an MMSE score of 1.1 (95% CI 0.4–1.9). Both groups showed a significant improvement in MBI and MMSE scores after 4 months, and there was no significant between-group difference. To conclude, the new service option and the usual care option showed similar improvement in rehabilitation outcomes at 4 months after baseline. Initiatives to provide alternative care options on a user-pay model should be encouraged to ensure a sustainable health care system.

Independence, institutionalization, death and treatment costs 18 months after rehabilitation of older people in two different primary health care settings

Background

The optimal setting and content of primary health care rehabilitation of older people is not known. Our aim was to study independence, institutionalization, death and treatment costs 18 months after primary care rehabilitation of older people in two different settings.

Methods

Eighteen months follow-up of an open, prospective study comparing the outcome of multi-disciplinary rehabilitation of older people, in a structured and intensive Primary care dedicated inpatient rehabilitation (PCDIR, n=202) versus a less structured and less intensive Primary care nursing home rehabilitation (PCNHR, n=100). Participants: 302 patients, disabled from stroke, hip-fracture, osteoarthritis and other chronic diseases, aged ≥65years, assessed to have a rehabilitation potential and being referred from general hospital or own residence. Outcome measures: Primary: Independence, assessed by Sunnaas ADL Index(SI). Secondary: Hospital and short-term nursing home length of stay (LOS); institutionalization, measured by institutional residence rate; death; and costs of rehabilitation and care. Statistical tests: T-tests, Correlation tests, Pearson’s χ², ANCOVA, Regression and Kaplan-Meier analyses.

Results

Overall SI scores were 26.1 (SD 7.2) compared to 27.0 (SD 5.7) at the end of rehabilitation, a statistically, but not clinically significant reduction (p=0.003 95%CI(0.3-1.5)). The PCDIR patients scored 2.2points higher in SI than the PCNHR patients, adjusted for age, gender, baseline MMSE and SI scores (p=0.003, 95%CI(0.8-3.7)). Out of 49 patients staying >28 days in short-term nursing homes, PCNHR-patients stayed significantly longer than PCDIR-patients (mean difference 104.9 days, 95%CI(0.28-209.6), p=0.05). The institutionalization increased in PCNHR (from 12%-28%, p=0.001), but not in PCDIR (from 16.9%-19.3%, p= 0.45). The overall one year mortality rate was 9.6%. Average costs were substantially higher for PCNHR versus PCDIR. The difference per patient was 3528€ for rehabilitation (p<0.001, 95%CI(2455–4756)), and 10134€ for the at-home care (p=0.002, 95%CI(4066–16202)). The total costs of rehabilitation and care were 18702€ (=1.6 times) higher for PCNHR than for PCDIR.

Conclusions

At 18 months follow-up the PCDIR-patients maintained higher levels of independence, spent fewer days in short-term nursing homes, and did not increase the institutionalization compared to PCNHR. The costs of rehabilitation and care were substantially lower for PCDIR. More communities should consider adopting the PCDIR model.

Trial registration

Clinicaltrials.gov ID NCT01457300