Journal of the American Geriatrics Society
-
In late-stage dementia, families often prioritize quality of life (QoL) and comfort, yet little research examines factors impacting QoL. We sought to (1) describe temporal trends in QoL in late-stage dementia, and (2) explore associations between patient characteristics, care interventions, and QoL. ⋯ Families judge QoL to be moderately good in late-stage dementia. They perceive activities, opportunities to leave the NH, and quality of interpersonal care as ways to improve dementia-specific QoL.
-
Use of harmful and/or unnecessary medications in older adults is common. Understanding older adult and caregiver attitudes toward deprescribing will contribute to medication optimization in practice. The aims of this study were to capture the attitudes and beliefs of older adults and caregivers toward deprescribing and determine what participant characteristics and/or attitudes (if any) predicted reported willingness to have a medication deprescribed. ⋯ Most older adults and caregivers are willing to have one of their or their care recipient's medication deprescribed, although different predictors (characteristics/attitudes) of this willingness were identified in these two groups.
-
Randomized Controlled Trial
Effects of Multicomponent Exercise on Frailty in Long-Term Nursing Homes: A Randomized Controlled Trial.
To determine the effect of multicomponent exercise on frailty and related adverse outcomes in residents of long-term nursing homes (LTNHs). ⋯ Individualized and progressive multicomponent exercise at moderate intensity seems to be effective to prevent falls and reduce frailty and mortality.
-
Dissemination of cutting-edge geriatrics-focused research is essential for academic geriatrics researchers, clinicians, and older adults and their caregivers. Social media channels, such as Twitter, provide a means of quickly reaching a wide array of users, globally. Besides standard tweets with links to research articles, visual abstracts are a means of delivering research results visually to end users succinctly. ⋯ While the standard tweet received 24 984 impressions with 17 retweets and 36 likes over 8 days, the visual abstract inclusive tweet received 168 447 impressions with 81 retweets and 100 likes in 4 days. To assist researchers on future visual abstract development, we provide a framework and real-world guide on translation of research abstracts into visual abstracts. We hope that by providing evidence and the means to create visual abstracts, researchers in geriatrics may be empowered to disseminate their research through this method and potentially advance the care of older adults worldwide.
-
Multicenter Study Observational Study
Aggressive Care near the End of Life for Cancer Patients in Medicare Accountable Care Organizations.
To compare aggressiveness of end-of-life (EoL) care for older cancer patients attributed to Medicare Shared Savings Programs with that for similar fee for service (FFS) beneficiaries not in an accountable care organization (ACO) and examine whether observed differences in EoL care utilization vary across markets that differ in ACO penetration. ⋯ Cancer patients attributed to ACOs had fewer repeated hospitalizations but more ICU admissions in the last month of life than non-ACO patients; they had similar rates of other measures of aggressive care at the EoL. This suggests opportunities for ACOs to improve EoL care for cancer patients. J Am Geriatr Soc 67:961-968, 2019.