Improving Geriatric Care Processes on Two Medical-Surgical Acute Care Units: A Pilot Study.

The Acute Care for Elders (ACE) Unit model improves cognitive and functional outcomes for hospitalized elders but reaches a small proportion of patients. To disseminate ACE Unit principles, we piloted the "Virtual ACE Intervention" that standardizes care processes for cognition and function without daily geriatrician oversight on two non-ACE units. The Virtual ACE Intervention includes staff training on geriatric assessments for cognition and function and on nurse-driven care algorithms. Completion of the geriatric assessments by nursing staff in patients aged 65 years and older and measures of patient mobility and prevalence of an abnormal delirium screening score were compared preintervention and postintervention. Postintervention, the completion of the assessments for current functional status and delirium improved (62.5% vs. 88.5%, p < .001) and (4.2% vs. 96.5%, p < .001). In a subsample analysis, in the postintervention period, more patients were up to the chair in the past day (36.4% vs. 63.5%, p = .04) and the prevalence of an abnormal delirium screening score was lower (13.6% vs. 4.8%, p = .16). The Virtual ACE Intervention is a feasible model for disseminating ACE Unit principles to non-ACE Units and may lead to increased adherence to care processes and improved clinical outcomes.

Using a resident discharge clinic for resident education and patient care: a feasibility study.

BACKGROUND: Many patients in internal medicine resident continuity clinics experience difficulty accessing care, making posthospitalization ambulatory follow-up challenging. Experiential learning in care transitions is also lacking for residents. OBJECTIVE: We sought to assess the feasibility and impact of a weekly Resident Discharge Clinic (RDC) in increasing access to early posthospitalization follow-up and providing learning opportunities for residents. METHODS: We staffed the RDC with an ambulatory block resident, an internal medicine preceptor, and a clinical pharmacist. We assessed time to posthospitalization follow-up, readmission rates, and resident perceptions of postdischarge care for resident-clinic patients, comparing data before and after RDC implementation. RESULTS: There were 636 discharges in the baseline group, 662 during the intervention period, and 56 in the RDC group. Six months after RDC implementation, the percentage of discharged resident-clinic patients with follow-up within 7 days improved from 6.6% at baseline to 9.7% (P  =  .04). The mean interval to the posthospitalization follow-up appointment in the RDC group was 7.4 days compared with 33.9 days in the baseline group (P < .001). The percentage of surveyed residents (n  =  72) who agreed that early follow-up was easy to arrange increased from 21% to 77% (P < .001). There was no significant decrease in the 30-day readmission rate for patients in the RDC group (18.1% versus 12.5%, P  =  .29). CONCLUSIONS: The RDC was easily implemented, increased access to timely posthospitalization follow-up, and provided a platform for resident learning about care transitions.

Using denosumab to treat immobilization hypercalcemia in a post-acute care patient.

BACKGROUND: Hypercalcemia in adults has several less common causes. Management in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) is challenging because bisphosphonates are contraindicated. This case presents an uncommon cause of hypercalcemia in a subacute rehabilitation patient who was managed with denosumab. CASE REPORT: A 79-year-old female with CKD stage 4 was admitted to a skilled nursing facility with a limited-weight-bearing status after right-hip arthroplasty. Four weeks later, she developed hypercalcemia (11.5 mg/dL; normal, 7.9-9.9 mg/dL) with serum albumin of 2.5 g/dL (corrected calcium, 12.7 mg/dL). Despite iv fluids, hypercalcemia worsened (corrected serum calcium, 14.5 mg/dL), and she was rehospitalized. Additional studies eliminated common causes of hypercalcemia, leading to the diagnosis of immobilization hypercalcemia. Due to CKD, a bisphosphonate was not given. She received 10 doses of calcitonin s.c. with mild improvement in her calcium, and she returned to the skilled nursing facility. Because hypercalcemia worsened within days, denosumab 60 mg was administered s.c., and her serum calcium level normalized. Over the next several weeks, her surgical wound worsened. Hip x-ray showed osteolysis of her residual right femoral head. In retrospect, hip x-ray during her hospitalization for hypercalcemia showed osteolysis, likely from osteomyelitis. A contribution of osteomyelitis to hypercalcemia could not be excluded. Despite resolution of hypercalcemia, she succumbed to sepsis. CONCLUSION: Immobilization hypercalcemia is underappreciated in post-acute care older adults. In this patient with CKD, denosumab reversed her hypercalcemia; however, the case highlights potential risks and limitations with this therapy and emphasizes the need for further studies in medically complex older adults.