NCT03360305

GAPcare: The Geriatric Acute & Post-acute Care Coordination Program for Fall Prevention in the Emergency Department

• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 110 (actual)
• Sponsor: Rhode Island Hospital · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 65 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Not accepted

Summary

GAPcare (Geriatric Acute \& Post-acute Care Coordination Program for Fall Prevention) is an early stage investigation that enrolls older adults who present to the Emergency Department after a fall to determine the feasibility of an Emergency Department (ED)-based multidisciplinary intervention for preventing recurrent falls in older adults.

Detailed description

Falls are the leading cause of fatal and non-fatal injury among older adults. EDs frequently evaluate older adults after their falls, but the typical evaluation consists of an injury assessment alone. There is a critical need for an ED-based intervention that addresses reasons for the fall and provides on-the-spot assessment and guidance to prevent subsequent falls. Failure to prevent subsequent falls will result in increased morbidity, mortality, healthcare utilization, loss of independence, and rising health care costs as the population of older adults increases. Participants in GAPcare will be older adults (≥65 years-old) who present to the ED for a fall. We will pursue the following specific aims to test and further refine the GAPcare intervention: (1) Examine the feasibility of recruitment and retention of eligible patients into the GAPcare intervention, (2) determine the initial efficacy of the GAPcare intervention in reducing subsequent falls and healthcare utilization at 6 months. Our long-term goal is to prevent the early morbidity and mortality of older adults who present to the ED after a fall. The overall objective of this survey is to gather preliminary data on the feasibility of an ED based fall prevention project.

Conditions

• Falls (Accidents) in Old Age

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
BEHAVIORAL	GAPcare intervention	Subjects will receive PT and pharmacist evaluation. PT will help determine whether subject may benefit from doing exercises to improve strength or balance. PT may also supply subject with an assist device. A pharmacist will ask patient about any medication they are taking and will make recommendations on how their medication could be changed to prevent falls. Pharmacists will communicate this information to subject's doctors. Subjects will receive a fall calendar for home, where they will record any falls they have after their discharge from the ED. They will receive a phone call at home asking about any recent falls and health care interactions. Study personnel will call subjects every 2 weeks for 6 months. Subjects may receive a referral for outpatient or home-based physical and occupational therapy at the end of the visit.

Timeline

• Start date: 2018-01-25
• Primary completion: 2019-03-29
• Completion: 2019-10-31
• First posted: 2017-12-04
• Last updated: 2020-07-09

Locations

2 sites across 1 country: United States