End-of-life care in hospitalized patients with dementia.

Background: As the aging population grows, the care provided to patients with dementia at the end of life represents a critical area of geriatric and palliative care. This study aimed to describe the care provided to hospitalized patients with dementia who died during their hospital stay.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted at a teaching hospital in Sydney, Australia.

Recruitment Feasibility of Patients with Peripheral Arterial Disease for a Multidisciplinary Intervention: Findings from the TEAM-PAD Trial.

Background: Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) is a chronic progressive vascular condition with high morbidity and mortality, often necessitating comprehensive management to mitigate cardiovascular risk. This study assessed the feasibility of recruiting patients with PAD for a multidisciplinary team (MDT)-based care intervention, comparing its effectiveness to standard care within a clinical trial setting.

Methods: This study was conducted as a cross-sectional analysis nested within the ongoing TEAM-PAD trial and targeted the recruitment of 30 patients within 12 weeks and evaluated recruitment, consent, and retention rates to assess feasibility.

Patient, carer and healthcare professional perspectives on deprescribing in surgical wards: A mixed methods study.

Aims: The perspectives of patients and healthcare professionals regarding deprescribing in surgical wards within hospital settings are unknown. The aim of this study was to explore current practices, attitudes and the enablers and barriers to deprescribing in hospital for older surgical inpatients from the perspectives of doctors, pharmacists, patients and carers.

Methods: A mixed methods study was performed.

Non-home discharge in the octogenarian and nonagenarian colorectal cancer population: a retrospective cohort study.

Purpose: This study aims to determine the rate of non-home discharge (NHD) and identify factors associated with non-home discharge in a colorectal cancer (CRC) population of adults aged 80 years and older. This is the first study looking specifically at NHD as an outcome in the ≥ 80 years colorectal cancer cohort.

Methods: This is a single-centre retrospective exploratory observational study from a high-volume colorectal cancer unit.

Older Adults' Experiences and Expectations of Doctor-Patient Interactions During Early Hospital Care.

Background: 'People-centered care' is one of the World Health Organization's six defining features of quality care and recognizes the importance of tailoring healthcare to individual needs. This is particularly important for older patients who are more vulnerable to complications during their hospitalization. The initial medical assessment in hospital is a vital part of any admission, however, the older patient's experience of this is not well understood.

A randomised controlled trial of a multidisciplinary TEAM-based approach to guide secondary cardiovascular risk reduction for patients with Peripheral Artery Disease (TEAM-PAD) study protocol.

Background: Peripheral arterial disease (1) is a vascular condition associated with significant cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Effective secondary prevention strategies are essential to improve cardiovascular outcomes in patients with PAD. The TEAM-PAD study aims to determine if a centralised virtual multidisciplinary team (MDT) model of care is effective in improving guideline-recommended secondary cardiovascular risk reduction for outpatients with PAD.

Mobile Phone Usage and Willingness to Use Mobile Phones to Support Medication Adherence and Receive Text Message Appointment Reminders in Older Outpatients With Type 2 Diabetes.

Background: Information technology can be used to improve the management of non-communicable diseases, such as diabetes. This study aims to evaluate the willingness of older outpatients with type 2 diabetes to use mobile phones to support medication adherence and receive text message appointment reminders and investigated the factors associated with this willingness.

Methods: This study was a cross-sectional study conducted at the outpatient department of Dong Da General Hospital.

Mobile applications on app stores for deprescribing: A scoping review.

Deprescribing is an evidence-based intervention to reduce potentially inappropriate medication use. Yet its implementation faces barriers including inadequate resources, training and time. Mobile applications (apps) on app stores could address some barriers by offering educational content and interactive features for medication assessment and deprescribing guidance.

Hospital and out-of-hospital services provided by public geriatric medicine departments in Australia and New Zealand.

Objective: To describe the types of hospital and out-of-hospital services provided by public geriatric medicine departments in Australia and New Zealand, and to explore head of department (HOD) views on issues in current and future service provision.

Methods: An electronic survey was sent to HODs of public geriatric medicine departments.

Results: Seventy-six (89%) of 85 identified HODs completed the survey.

The Impact of Deprescribing Interventions on the Drug Burden Index and Other Outcomes: A Systematic Review.

Objectives: The Drug Burden Index (DBI) calculates a person's exposure to anticholinergic and sedative medications. We aimed to review randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of deprescribing interventions that reported the DBI as an outcome, their characteristics, effectiveness in reducing the DBI, and impact on other outcomes.

Design: Systematic review with meta-analysis.

Development of a minimum clinical dataset for preoperative comprehensive geriatric assessment using a modified Delphi technique.

Objective: To construct a standardised, consensus-guided minimum clinical dataset (MCDS) for preoperative comprehensive geriatric assessment and optimisation (CGA) in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand.

Methods: We conducted a review of the international perioperative literature to identify CGA domains and tools for potential inclusion in the MCDS. We invited members of the Australian and New Zealand Society for Geriatric Medicine to participate in a Delphi study to obtain consensus on MCDS tools.

Health-Related Quality of Life among Older Adults with Dementia Living in Vietnamese Nursing Homes.

Better understanding of the quality of life among nursing home residents with dementia is important for developing interventions. The objectives of this cross-sectional study were to examine factors associated with poor health-related quality of life in older people with dementia living in nursing homes in Hanoi, Vietnam. In-person interviews were conducted with 140 adults who were 60 years and older with dementia, and information about their quality of life was obtained using the Quality of Life in Alzheimer's Disease (QOL-AD) scale.

Stakeholders' preferences for the design and delivery of virtual care services: A systematic review of discrete choice experiments.

This systematic review aimed to synthesise evidence from discrete choice experiments (DCEs) eliciting preferences for virtual models of care, as well as to assess the quality of those DCEs and compare the relative preferences for different stakeholder groups. Articles were included if published between January 2010 and December 2022. Data were synthesised narratively, and attributes were assessed for frequency, significance, and relative importance using a semi-quantitative approach.

Association of the Drug Burden Index (DBI) exposure with outcomes: A systematic review.

Background: The Drug Burden Index (DBI) measures an individual's total exposure to anticholinergic and sedative medications. This systematic review aimed to investigate the association of the DBI with clinical and prescribing outcomes in observational pharmaco-epidemiological studies, and the effect of DBI exposure on functional outcomes in pre-clinical models.

Methods: A systematic search of nine electronic databases, citation indexes and gray literature was performed (April 1, 2007-December 31, 2022).

Factors associated with frailty in geriatric patients with and without sarcopenia in Vietnam.

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the relationship between sarcopenia and frailty and examine factors associated with frailty among older patients with and without sarcopenia.

Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on older inpatients and outpatients in Vietnam. Participants aged 60 years or older were consecutively enrolled in the study.

Optimising Medications in Older Vascular Surgery Patients Through Geriatric Co-management.

Background: Prescribing of potentially inappropriate medications and under-prescribing of guideline-recommended medications for cardiovascular risk modification have both been associated with negative outcomes in older adults. Hospitalisation represents an important opportunity to optimise medication use and may be achieved through geriatrician-led interventions.

Objective: We aimed to evaluate whether implementation of a novel model of care called Geriatric Comanagement of older Vascular (GeriCO-V) surgery patients is associated with improvements in medication prescribing.

The experience of hospital care for older surgical patients and their carers: A mixed-methods study.

Objective: A growing proportion of older adults are undergoing surgery, but there is a paucity of patient and carer experience research in this group. This study investigated the experience of hospital care in an older vascular surgery population for patients and their carers.

Methods: This was a mixed-methods convergent design, including simultaneous collection of quantitative and qualitative research strands by combining open-ended questions with rating scales in a questionnaire.

When I say … microlearning.

In the latest “When I Say…” instalment, microlearning is defined with illustrative examples as a valuable pedagogy characterised by short duration and focused content.

What Is an Aging-Related Disease? An Epidemiological Perspective.

There are no established or standardized definitions of aging-related disease. Data from the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study 2019 were used to model the relationship between age and incidence of diseases. Clustering analysis identified 4 groups of noncommunicable diseases: Group A diseases with an exponential increase in incidence with age; Group B diseases with an exponential increase in incidence that usually peaked in late life which then declined or plateaued at the oldest ages; and Groups C and D diseases with an onset in earlier life and where incidence was stable or decreased in old age.

New horizons in the perioperative care of older adults.

Older adults undergoing surgery have high perioperative morbidity and mortality. Age-related physiological changes and prevalence of geriatric syndromes such as frailty increase the risk of adverse postoperative outcomes. Geriatricians utilise comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA) and management to identify and manage geriatric syndromes, and deliver patient-centred perioperative care.