Community health worker interventions for older adults with complex health needs: A systematic review.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: The number of older adults with complex health needs is growing, and this population experiences disproportionate morbidity and mortality. Interventions led by community health workers (CHWs) can improve clinical outcomes in the general adult population with multimorbidity, but few studies have investigated CHW-delivered interventions in older adults. DESIGN: We systematically reviewed the impact of CHW interventions on health outcomes among older adults with complex health needs. We searched for English-language articles from database inception through April 2020 using seven databases. PROSPERO protocol registration CRD42019118761. SETTING: Any U.S. or international setting, including clinical and community-based settings. PARTICIPANTS: Adults aged 60 years or older with complex health needs, defined in this review as multimorbidity, frailty, disability, or high-utilization. INTERVENTIONS: Interventions led by a CHW or similar role consistent with the American Public Health Association's definition of CHWs. MEASUREMENTS: Pre-defined health outcomes (chronic disease measures, general health measures, treatment adherence, quality of life, or functional measures) as well as qualitative findings. RESULTS: Of 5671 unique records, nine studies met eligibility criteria, including four randomized controlled trials, three quasi-experimental studies, and two qualitative studies. Target population and intervention characteristics were variable, and studies were generally of low-to-moderate methodological quality. Outcomes included mood, functional status and disability, social support, well-being and quality of life, medication knowledge, and certain health conditions (e.g., falls, cognition). Results were mixed with several studies demonstrating significant effects on mood and function, including one high-quality RCT, while others noted no significant intervention effects on outcomes. CONCLUSION: CHW-led interventions may have benefit for older adults with complex health needs, but additional high-quality studies are needed to definitively determine the effectiveness of CHW interventions in this population. Integration of CHWs into geriatric clinical settings may be a strategy to deliver evidence-based interventions and improve clinical outcomes in complex older adults.

Impact of Diet and Exercise on Weight and Cognition in Older Adults: A Rapid Review.

OBJECTIVE: To determine where the current literature stands in regard to diet/exercise interventions on cognition in overweight or obese individuals. DATA SOURCE: A rapid review was conducted of English-language studies published in Medline from January 1965 to January 2020. STUDY INCLUSION AND EXCLUSION CRITERIA: Included studies were intervention studies lasting ≥12 weeks, with participants aged ≥65 years, with a body mass index ≥25 kg/m2. DATA EXTRACTION: Data extracted included study population, duration, intervention design, outcomes, and results. DATA SYNTHESIS: Outcomes were qualitatively measured due to paucity of RTC. RESULTS: 1845 citations were identified, 31 full-text articles were reviewed, and 5 studies were included. Studies had usual care control groups and combined exercise/diet intervention groups with 31-3,526 participants randomized to each arm. Mean age of participants was 69.2-83.4 years. Studies reporting on cognitive changes showed marginally significant positive changes in cognition, and those that reported BMI indicated potential improvements in cognition. CONCLUSIONS: The number of interventions assessing the combined effects of both diet and exercise is low. Future studies should evaluate the impact of combined effects to ascertain whether cognitive decline may be reversed in older adults with a BMI ≥25 kg/m2.

Integrated Care for Older Adults with Serious Mental Illness and Medical Comorbidity: Evidence-Based Models and Future Research Directions.

The excess risk of early mortality, medical comorbidity, early institutionalization, and high costs among older adults with serious mental illness necessitates development and dissemination of effective and sustainable integrated care models that simultaneously address mental and physical health needs. This overview highlights current, evidence-based integrated care models, which predominantly adopt the following approaches: (1) psychosocial skills training, (2) integrated illness self-management, and (3) collaborative care and behavioral health homes. Finally, innovative models that build on these approaches by incorporating novel uses of telehealth, mobile health technology and peer support, and strategies from developing economies are discussed.

Systematic Review of the Impact of Behavioral Health Homes on Cardiometabolic Risk Factors for Adults With Serious Mental Illness.

OBJECTIVE: This systematic review examined the impact of health homes on cardiometabolic risk among adults with serious mental illness. METHODS: The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses procedures were used to conduct the systematic review. Databases were searched for peer-reviewed articles published between 1946 and August 2018 that compared health homes with a control condition (e.g., usual care and secondary data analyses using matched samples). Participants, interventions, comparisons, outcomes, and study design criteria were used to assess study eligibility. Studies were assessed for methodological quality by using the Quality Assessment of Before and After Studies With No Control Group and the Quality Assessment of Controlled Intervention Studies. RESULTS: Eighteen studies (i.e., 11 observational studies, four quasi-experimental studies, and three randomized controlled trials) reported on 17 health homes. Most studies reported increases in receipt of screening for cardiometabolic risk factors and service use. There was a modest reduction in selected cardiometabolic risk factors among people with serious mental illness, but clinical outcomes varied widely among studies. CONCLUSIONS: Improvement in cardiometabolic risk factors varied across the studies, and the clinical significance of these reductions was not clear. Peer support and self-management training may represent strategies to improve cardiometabolic risk factors. Colocation of services may not be enough to significantly affect cardiometabolic risk factors. Health homes that include standardized screening, peer support and self-management training, and intervention components that target interdependent risk factors may have a greater impact on clinical outcomes.

Benefit-to-Risk Balance of Weight Loss Interventions in Older Adults with Obesity.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Obesity in the older adult is a burgeoning health epidemic that leads to increased morbidity, disability, and institutionalization. This review presents a brief overview of geriatric-specific consequences of obesity by highlighting the risks and benefits of intentional weight loss. RECENT FINDINGS: Intentional weight loss reduces the extent of adiposity-related illnesses, yet the approach in older adults is fraught with challenges. Interventions combining caloric restriction and physical exercise (aerobic and resistance) maximize fat loss and minimize loss of muscle and bone. Interventions are also effective at improving physical function, reducing medication burden, and improving symptomatic osteoarthritis in this population. Approaches can mitigate the risks of isolated caloric restriction on muscle and bone in a safe and effective manner. Effective weight loss strategies should be considered in older adults. While there are potential risks, practical clinical approaches can minimize the potential harms while maximizing their benefits.

Effectiveness of Ambulatory Telemedicine Care in Older Adults: A Systematic Review.

BACKGROUND: Disparities in healthcare access and delivery, caused by transportation and health workforce difficulties, negatively impact individuals living in rural areas. These challenges are especially prominent in older adults. DESIGN: We systematically evaluated the feasibility, acceptability, and effectiveness in providing telemedicine (TMed), searching the English-language literature for studies (January 2012 to July 2018) in the following databases: Medline (PubMed); Cochrane Library (Wiley); Web of Science; CINAHL; EMBASE (Ovid); and PsycINFO (EBSCO). PARTICIPANTS: Older adults (mean age = 65 years or older, and none were younger than 60 years). INTERVENTIONS: Interventions consisted of live, synchronous, two-way videoconferencing communication in nonhospital settings. All medical interventions were included. MEASUREMENTS: Quality assessment, using the Cochrane Collaboration's Risk-of-Bias Tool, was applied on all included articles, including a qualitative summary of all articles. RESULTS: Of 6616 citations, we reviewed the full text of 1173 articles, excluding 1047 that did not meet criteria. Of the 17 randomized controlled trials, the United States was the country with the most trials (6 [35%]), with cohort sizes ranging from 3 to 844 (median = 35) participants. Risk of bias among included studies varied from low to high. Our qualitative analysis suggests that TMed can improve health outcomes in older adults and that it could be used in this population. CONCLUSIONS: TMed is feasible and acceptable in delivering care to older adults. Research should focus on well-designed randomized trials to overcome the high degree of bias observed in our synthesis. Clinicians should consider using TMed in routine practice to overcome barriers of distance and access to care. J Am Geriatr Soc 67:1737-1749, 2019.

Shared decision making embedded in the undergraduate medical curriculum: A scoping review.

OBJECTIVE: Shared decision making (SDM) training is shown to be effective and is increasingly embedded in continuing medical education. There is little evidence, however, about undergraduate medical education for SDM. The aim of this scoping review was to identify existing SDM training embedded in the undergraduate medical curriculum and analyze their impact. METHODS: The authors systematically searched the extant literature for peer reviewed articles, hand searched key journals and reference lists of key articles, and contacted relevant stakeholders as part of a key informant analysis. RESULTS: Included in the qualitative synthesis were 12 studies evaluating 11 SDM courses in medical education across six countries. Most courses integrated SDM training in clinical clerkship and varied in length from one to seven hours. The majority of studies assessed course impact on students' skills in SDM. Most studies suggested that students' skills and confidence in SDM significantly increased post-training, but three studies reported no significant improvement in SDM. Ten courses continue to be taught routinely. CONCLUSION: Overall, studies suggested a positive impact on medical students' skills, confidence, and attitudes regarding SDM. Embedding SDM training in undergraduate medical education may be a practical and effective solution for current barriers to the widespread adoption of SDM.

Integrated Care for Older Adults with Serious Mental Illness and Medical Comorbidity: Evidence-Based Models and Future Research Directions.

The excess risk of early mortality, medical comorbidity, early institutionalization, and high costs among older adults with serious mental illness necessitates development and dissemination of effective and sustainable integrated care models that simultaneously address mental and physical health needs. This overview highlights current, evidence-based integrated care models, which predominantly adopt the following approaches: (1) psychosocial skills training, (2) integrated illness self-management, and (3) collaborative care and behavioral health homes. Finally, innovative models that build on these approaches by incorporating novel uses of telehealth, mobile health technology and peer support, and strategies from developing economies are discussed.

Feasibility, Acceptability, and Preliminary Effectiveness of a Peer-Delivered and Technology Supported Self-Management Intervention for Older Adults with Serious Mental Illness.

To assess the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary effectiveness of a peer-delivered and technology supported integrated medical and psychiatric self-management intervention for older adults with serious mental illness. Ten older adults with serious mental illness (i.e., schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, bipolar disorder, or major depressive disorder) and medical comorbidity (i.e., cardiovascular disease, obesity, diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, hypertension, and/or high cholesterol) aged 60 years and older received the PeerTECH intervention in their homes. Three certified peer specialists were trained to deliver PeerTECH. Data were collected at baseline, one-month, and three-month. The pilot study demonstrated that a three-month, peer-delivered and technology-supported integrated medical and psychiatric self-management intervention ("PeerTECH") was experienced by peer specialists and participants as feasible and acceptable. PeerTECH was associated with statistically significant improvements in psychiatric self-management. In addition, pre/post, non-statistically significant improvements were observed in self-efficacy for managing chronic health conditions, hope, quality of life, medical self-management skills, and empowerment. This pre/post pilot study demonstrated it is possible to train peers to use technology to deliver an integrated psychiatric and medical self-management intervention in a home-based setting to older adults with serious mental illness with fidelity. These findings provide preliminary evidence that a peer-delivered and technology-supported intervention designed to improve medical and psychiatric self-management is feasible, acceptable, and is potentially associated with improvements in psychiatric self-management, self-efficacy for managing chronic health conditions, hope, quality of life, medical self-management skills, and empowerment with older adults with serious mental illness and chronic health conditions.

Patient experience with healthcare services among older adults with serious mental illness compared to the general older population.

Objective To compare patient experience with healthcare services and providers among older patients (≥50 years old) with and without serious mental illness. Methods Using secondary data from the Medical Expenditures Panel Survey from 2003 through 2013, we compared adults aged 50 years and older with schizophrenia spectrum disorder ( n = 106), mood disorders (i.e., major depressive disorder and bipolar disorder) ( n = 419), and no serious mental illness ( n = 34,921). Results Older adults with schizophrenia spectrum disorder reported significantly worse provider communication than older adults without serious mental illness. Older adults with mood disorders reported the greatest barriers to shared decision-making and the greatest difficulty accessing services. Conclusions Our results highlight the need to improve the patient experience of older adults with serious mental illness. Addressing provider communication, shared decision-making, and access to care among this vulnerable group of older adults may impact clinical outcomes and costs. Future research examining the extent to which improving the patient experience may improve health outcomes and enhance treatment for this highly vulnerable older group is warranted.

Operationalisation and validation of the Stopping Elderly Accidents, Deaths, and Injuries (STEADI) fall risk algorithm in a nationally representative sample.

BACKGROUND: Preventing falls and fall-related injuries among older adults is a public health priority. The Stopping Elderly Accidents, Deaths, and Injuries (STEADI) tool was developed to promote fall risk screening and encourage coordination between clinical and community-based fall prevention resources; however, little is known about the tool's predictive validity or adaptability to survey data. METHODS: Data from five annual rounds (2011-2015) of the National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS), a representative cohort of adults age 65 years and older in the USA. Analytic sample respondents (n=7392) were categorised at baseline as having low, moderate or high fall risk according to the STEADI algorithm adapted for use with NHATS data. Logistic mixed-effects regression was used to estimate the association between baseline fall risk and subsequent falls and mortality. Analyses incorporated complex sampling and weighting elements to permit inferences at a national level. RESULTS: Participants classified as having moderate and high fall risk had 2.62 (95% CI 2.29 to 2.99) and 4.76 (95% CI 3.51 to 6.47) times greater odds of falling during follow-up compared with those with low risk, respectively, controlling for sociodemographic and health-related risk factors for falls. High fall risk was also associated with greater likelihood of falling multiple times annually but not with greater risk of mortality. CONCLUSION: The adapted STEADI clinical fall risk screening tool is a valid measure for predicting future fall risk using survey cohort data. Further efforts to standardise screening for fall risk and to coordinate between clinical and community-based fall prevention initiatives are warranted.