David Chan

Evidence-Based Guidelines for the Secondary Prevention of Falls in Older Adults

Background: Falls are a significant problem for older adults. Individuals who have sustained a fall come to the attention of health care providers and are at risk of further falls. To promote the highest quality of care and reduce variation in care, a practice guideline is needed. Summarization of evidence regarding falls may be useful to researchers in this field. Objectives: To provide evidence-based guidelines of assessment and treatment to prevent falls in older adults and to provide researchers with tables of risk factor studies and randomized controlled trials of falls prevention. Methods: A template for the development of practice guidelines from the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research was used. Evidence for risk factors was accepted from prospective studies with more than 80% follow-up. Potentially modifiable risk factors were selected and a schema for evaluating the importance of each risk factor was used. Evidence for interventions was examined from randomized controlled trials and strength of the evidence was graded. Recommendations for aspects of care where judgment was required were made by panel consensus. Results: Information was drawn from 46 risk factor studies and 37 randomized controlled trials to develop a practice guideline consisting of assessment items and recommended interventions for community-dwelling and institution-dwelling older adults separately. For clinicians, a check list is provided. Summary tables of the results of studies are given to substantiate the recommendations. Conclusions: For community-dwelling older adults, there is strong evidence for multi-factorial specific risk assessment and targeted treatment. Balance exercises are recommended for all individuals who have had a fall and there is evidence for a program of home physiotherapy for women over 80 years of age regardless of risk factor status. For institutional settings, the establishment of a falls program for safety checks, ongoing staff education and monitoring is substantiated by research. Residents who have fallen need to be assessed for specific risk factors and clinical indicators to determine relevant management options.

Individualized electronic decision support and reminders to improve diabetes care in the community: COMPETE II randomized trial

Background: Diabetes mellitus is a complex disease with serious complications. Electronic decision support, providing information that is shared and discussed by both patient and physician, encourages timely interventions and may improve the management of this chronic disease. However, it has rarely been tested in community-based primary care. Methods: In this pragmatic randomized trial, we randomly assigned adult primary care patients with type 2 diabetes to receive the intervention or usual care. The intervention involved shared access by the primary care provider and the patient to a Web-based, colour-coded diabetes tracker, which provided sequential monitoring values for 13 diabetes risk factors, their respective targets and brief, prioritized messages of advice. The primary outcome measure was a process composite score. Secondary outcomes included clinical composite scores, quality of life, continuity of care and usability. The outcome assessors were blinded to each patient’s intervention status. Results: We recruited sequentially 46 primary care providers and then 511 of their patients (mean age 60.7 [standard deviation 12.5] years). Mean follow-up was 5.9 months. The process composite score was significantly better for patients in the intervention group than for control patients (difference 1.27, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.79–1.75, p < 0.001); 61.7% (156/253) of patients in the intervention group, compared with 42.6% (110/258) of control patients, showed improvement (difference 19.1%, p < 0.001). The clinical composite score also had significantly more variables with improvement for the intervention group (0.59, 95% CI 0.09–1.10, p = 0.02), including significantly greater declines in blood pressure (−3.95 mm Hg systolic and −2.38 mm Hg diastolic) and glycated hemoglobin (−0.2%). Patients in the intervention group reported greater satisfaction with their diabetes care. Interpretation: A shared electronic decision-support system to support the primary care of diabetes improved the process of care and some clinical markers of the quality of diabetes care. (ClinicalTrials.gov trial register no. NCT00813085.)

Shared electronic vascular risk decision support in primary care: Computerization of Medical Practices for the Enhancement of Therapeutic Effectiveness (COMPETE III) randomized trial.

BACKGROUND Computerized decision support systems (CDSSs) linked with electronic medical records (EMRs) are promoted as an effective means of improving patient care. However, very few high-quality studies are set in routine, community-based clinical care, and no consistent evidence of an effect on patient outcomes has been found. METHODS A randomized controlled trial among EMR-using primary care practices in Ontario, Canada. Patients 55 years or older with previous vascular events, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, or hypercholesterolemia were randomized to the Computerization of Medical Practices for the Enhancement of Therapeutic Effectiveness (COMPETE III) CDSS intervention or to usual care. The intervention included personally tailored electronic vascular risk monitoring and treatment advice shared between the physician and patient, risk calculation, and a clinical resource. The primary outcome was a composite score of 8 recommended process outcomes at 1 year. Data collectors were blinded to group allocation. Analysis used the intention-to-treat principle with multiple imputation for missing data. RESULTS We randomized and included in the analysis 1102 patients in 49 community-based physician practices (53.4% female; mean age, 69.1 years; 28.0% with a previous vascular event). The intervention group (545 [49.5%]) had a significantly greater improvement in mean process composite, with a difference of 4.70 (P < .001) on a 27-point scale. Intervention patients had significantly higher odds of rating their continuity of care (4.18; P < .001) and their ability to improve their vascular health (3.07; P < .001) as improved. Despite this improvement, the clinical outcomes-vascular events, clinical variables, and quality of life-were not improved. CONCLUSION Despite favorable reviews and important improvements in the complex processes required to reduce vascular risk, clinical outcomes remain unchanged.

Rehabilitation in a primary care setting for persons with chronic illness – a randomized controlled trial

Aim The primary objective of this study was to determine whether adults with a chronic illness within a primary care setting who received a rehabilitation intervention in this setting showed greater improvement in health status and had fewer hospital admissions and emergency room visits compared with adults who do not receive the intervention. Background More than half of Canadians (16 million people) live with chronic illness. Persons with chronic illness in primary care, especially older persons who are most at risk for functional decline, are currently not receiving effective management. Methods A randomized controlled trial was used. A rehabilitation multi-component intervention was delivered by a physiotherapist (PT) and occupational therapist in a primary care setting and included collaborative goal setting for rehabilitation needs, a six-week chronic disease self-management (SM) workshop, referral to community programs and a web-based education programme. Findings Three hundred and three patients participated, n = 152 intervention group and n = 151 in the control group. There was a significant difference between the groups for planned hospital days ( F = 6.3, P = 0.00) with an adjusted difference 0.60 day per person, and increased satisfaction with rehabilitation services however no difference on health status or emergency room visits. This rehabilitation intervention which had a strong SM component prevented planned hospitalizations that resulted in a conservative estimated cost saving from reduced hospitalizations of

Monitoring physical functioning as the sixth vital sign: evaluating patient and practice engagement in chronic illness care in a primary care setting--a quasi-experimental design

65 000. Future research needs to examine which patient groups with chronic illness show positive responses to rehabilitation and self-management.

Does monitoring change in function in community-dwelling older adults alter outcome? A randomized controlled trial

BackgroundIn Canada, one in three adults or almost 9 million people report having a chronic condition. Over two thirds of total deaths result from cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer and respiratory illness and 77% of persons ≥65 years have at least one chronic condition. Persons with chronic disease are at risk for functional decline; as a result, there is an increased awareness of the significance of functional status as an important health outcome. The purpose of this study was to determine whether patients who receive a multi-component rehabilitation intervention, including online monitoring of function with feedback and self-management workshops, showed less functional decline than case matched controls who did not receive this intervention. In addition, we wanted to determine whether capacity building initiatives within the Family Health Team promote a collaborative approach to Chronic Disease Management.MethodsA population-based multi-component rehabilitation intervention delivered to persons with chronic illnesses (≥ 44 yrs) (n = 60) was compared to a group of age and sex matched controls (n = 60) with chronic illnesses receiving usual care within a primary healthcare setting. The population-based intervention consisted of four main components: (1) function-based individual assessment and action planning, (2) rehabilitation self-management workshops, (3) on-line self-assessment of function and (4) organizational capacity building. T-tests and chi-square tests were used for continuous and categorical variables respectively in baseline comparison between groups.ResultsTwo MANOVA showed significant between group differences in patient reported physical functioning (Λ = 0.88, F = (2.86) = 5.97. p = 0.004) and for the physical performance measures collectively as the dependent variable (Λ = 0.80, F = (6.93) = 3.68. p = 0.0025). There were no within group differences for the capacity measures.ConclusionIt is feasible to monitor physical functioning as a health outcome for persons with chronic illness in primary care. The timeline for this study was not sufficient to show an increase in the capacity within the team; however there were some differences in patient outcomes. The short timeline was likely not sufficient to build the capacity required to support this approach.Trial registrationNCT00859638

Developing and testing an electronic medication administration monitoring device for community dwelling seniors: a feasibility study

Objective: To determine whether information about an older persons physical functioning provided to the patient and his or her physician delays functional decline and improves health outcomes. Design: A randomized controlled trial was undertaken; the assessors were not blinded to the group allocation. Setting: The study took place in a clinic within a hospital setting. Participants: Two hundred and sixty-five community-dwelling people over 65 years were recruited from family practice units. Interventions: The intervention group received assessments of physical function with feedback to the participant and the participants family physician or functional assessments alone over 18 months. Self-report measures for health status using the Short Form-36 (SF-36) and preclinical disability were used together with performance measures which included the lower extremity performance test and muscle strength. Results: There were small, statistically significant group/time interactions which included disability scores, F=4.78, P ≤0.05), and the vitality subscale of the SF-36, F=7.47, P ≤0.01). Conclusion: Providing information about the results of detailed assessment of physical functioning to older adults and their physicians did not show significant differences in function scores between the intervention and control groups.

Access to Web-Based Personalized Antenatal Health Records for Pregnant Women: A Randomized Controlled Trial

BackgroundMedication non-adherence, polypharmacy, and adverse drug events are major healthcare issues leading to significant morbidity, mortality, and healthcare expenditures. Currently, there are no methods to systematically track medication usage in community-dwelling seniors. The eDosette prototype was created to make medication use patterns visible via the Internet. This study aims to demonstrate feasibility, usability, and acceptability of the eDosette in community-dwelling seniors in primary care.MethodsA 2-week feasibility study involving a convenience sample of 10 patients from an academic family medicine teaching unit in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, was conducted over a 6-month period between April and October 2015. The eDosette transmitted hourly electronic data via the Internet on each participant’s pattern of medication use; this data was converted into an individualized medication administration record (MAR). Based on the MARs from the 10 participants, the frequency of missed medication doses, the time of dose administration, and each participant’s adherence rate for their prescribed medications could be determined. A medication adherence survey and a patient usability and acceptability survey were administered to all the participants of the study.ResultsThe eDosette was able to record a participant’s medication use and transmit this data electronically via the Internet with sufficient quality to create participant-specific MARs. A total of 418 doses were captured by the eDosette throughout the study; only 5% (n = 22 doses) were missing information or had poor image quality. Analysis of the MARs revealed that 19% (n = 79 doses) were taken outside a 2-h window of the average dose administration time, and two doses were completely missed by all participants during this feasibility study. Participant feedback found the eDosette easy and acceptable to use. Participant feedback also identified hardware and software issues that require attention prior to a larger study.ConclusionsThe eDosette is a feasible and novel technology that can be successfully installed into the homes of community-dwelling seniors to help in monitoring actual medication use patterns. This study provided details for further device development and evidence to support the need for a larger pilot study on the eDosette’s impact on medication adherence.