TY - JOUR
T1 - Does being assisted by care workers affect antipsychotics prescription among older people discharged from hospital?
AU - Di Rosa, Mirko
AU - Fabbietti, Paolo
AU - Corsonello, Andrea
AU - Fusco, Sergio
AU - Sganga, Federica
AU - Volpato, Stefano
AU - Ruggiero, Carmelinda
AU - Onder, Graziano
AU - Lattanzio, Fabrizia
PY - 2017/10/1
Y1 - 2017/10/1
N2 - Aim: Several factors can affect antipsychotic prescriptions, among which, caregivers. However, whether being assisted by a care worker might increase the rate of antipsychotic prescriptions at discharge from acute care hospital has not been previously investigated. We aimed to investigate whether being assisted by a care worker is associated with increased use of antipsychotics among older patients discharged from acute care hospitals. Methods: The present series consisted of 928 patients not taking antipsychotics at admission in seven acute care wards of geriatric medicine in Italy (mean age 80.8 ± 7.2 years, 54.9% women). The outcome of the study was defined as receiving an antipsychotic prescription at discharge. Patients were grouped according to their living conditions as follows: (i) living alone; (ii) living only with care worker; (iii) living with care worker and family members; and (iv) living only with family members. The association between study variables and antipsychotic prescription at discharge was investigated by logistic regression analysis. Results: After adjusting for potential confounders, being assisted by care workers was significantly associated with the outcome (OR 2.64, 95% CI 1.21–5.75). Diagnosis of dementia (OR 2.73, 95% CI 1.65–4.51), instrumental activities of daily living limitations (OR 1.12, 95% CI 1.05–1.21) and delirium during stay (OR 3.87, 95% CI 2.01–7.47) also qualified as independent correlates of antipsychotic prescription at discharge. Conclusions: Being assisted by care workers could increase the likelihood of receiving antipsychotics at discharge from acute care hospitals. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2017; 17: 1707–1713.
AB - Aim: Several factors can affect antipsychotic prescriptions, among which, caregivers. However, whether being assisted by a care worker might increase the rate of antipsychotic prescriptions at discharge from acute care hospital has not been previously investigated. We aimed to investigate whether being assisted by a care worker is associated with increased use of antipsychotics among older patients discharged from acute care hospitals. Methods: The present series consisted of 928 patients not taking antipsychotics at admission in seven acute care wards of geriatric medicine in Italy (mean age 80.8 ± 7.2 years, 54.9% women). The outcome of the study was defined as receiving an antipsychotic prescription at discharge. Patients were grouped according to their living conditions as follows: (i) living alone; (ii) living only with care worker; (iii) living with care worker and family members; and (iv) living only with family members. The association between study variables and antipsychotic prescription at discharge was investigated by logistic regression analysis. Results: After adjusting for potential confounders, being assisted by care workers was significantly associated with the outcome (OR 2.64, 95% CI 1.21–5.75). Diagnosis of dementia (OR 2.73, 95% CI 1.65–4.51), instrumental activities of daily living limitations (OR 1.12, 95% CI 1.05–1.21) and delirium during stay (OR 3.87, 95% CI 2.01–7.47) also qualified as independent correlates of antipsychotic prescription at discharge. Conclusions: Being assisted by care workers could increase the likelihood of receiving antipsychotics at discharge from acute care hospitals. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2017; 17: 1707–1713.
KW - antipsychotics
KW - care workers
KW - hospital Discharge
KW - Italy
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U2 - 10.1111/ggi.12931
DO - 10.1111/ggi.12931
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85034454740
VL - 17
SP - 1707
EP - 1713
JO - Geriatrics and Gerontology International
JF - Geriatrics and Gerontology International
SN - 1447-0594
IS - 10
ER -