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Background This study tested the impact of Function Focused Care for Assisted Living Using the Evidence Integration Triangle (FFC-AL-EIT) on: (1) care interactions between residents and direct care staff; and (2) behavior and psychological symptoms associated with dementia among residents. Design This was a randomized controlled trial. Setting A total of 59 assisted living facilities in Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Massachusetts participated. Participants The sample included 550 mostly White (98%), female (69%) residents with a mean age of 89.30 (standard deviation = 7.63) years. Intervention The four-step FFC-AL-EIT intervention was implemented by a function focused care nurse facilitator working with a facility champion over 12 months. The steps included: (1) environment and policy assessments; (2) education; (3) establishing resident function focused care service plans; and (4) mentoring and motivating. Measures Resident descriptive data (e.g., age, sex, education, and comorbidities), depression, agitation, resistiveness to care, and the quality of care interactions were obtained at baseline and 4 and 12 months. Treatment fidelity data included environment and policy assessments, performance of function focused care by staff, and service plan assessments. Results There was a significant positive treatment effect related to depression, agitation, resistiveness to care, and quality of care interactions with either less decline or some improvement in these behaviors and symptoms in the treatment versus control group. Conclusion The study provides some statistical support, which may not necessarily be clinically significant evidence, for psychosocial outcomes of residents and care interactions between staff and residents in assisted living settings.

The purpose of this study was to describe physical activity and function of older adults in assisted living communities and test the association between moderate and vigorous activity and falls. This study used baseline data from 393 participants from the first two cohorts in the Function-Focused Care in Assisted Living Using the Evidence Integration Triangle study. The majority of participants were female (N = 276, 70%) and White (N = 383, 97%) with a mean age of 87 years (SD = 7). Controlling for age, cognition, gender, setting, and function, the time spent in moderate or vigorous levels of physical activity was associated with having a fall in the prior 4 months. Those who engaged in more moderate physical activity were 0.6% less likely to have a fall (OR = 0.994, Wald statistic = 5.54, p = .02), and those who engaged in more vigorous activity were 2% less likely to have a fall (OR = 0.980, Wald statistic = 3.88, p = .05).

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to describe the incidence, pharmacologic management and impact of pain on function, agitation, and resistiveness to care among assisted living residents. DESIGN: This was a descriptive study. DATA SOURCES: Baseline data from 260 residents in the second cohort of the study, Dissemination and Implementation of Function Focused Care for Assisted Living Using the Evidence Integration Triangle (FFC-AL-EIT). REVIEW/ANALYSIS METHODS: Descriptive analyses for the Pain Assessment in Advanced Dementia (PAINAD), Visual Descriptor Scale (VDS), and use of medication for pain management and hypothesis testing using linear regression analyses were performed. RESULTS: The majority of the sample was female (71%) and white (96%) with a mean age of 87 (SD=7). Fifty-two out of the 260 residents (20%) reported pain based on either the PAINAD or the VDS. Out of the total 260 residents, 75 (29%) received pain medication. Twenty-two out of the 52 individuals (42%) reporting pain were not getting pain medication. Controlling for age, gender and cognition, the PAINAD was significantly associated with agitation, function, and resistiveness to care and the VDS was only associated with function. CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of pain was low among participants based on the PAINAD or the VDS. Pain measured by the PAINAD was significantly associated with function, agitation and resistiveness to care. NURSING PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Pain assessments should include both objective and subjective measures and management of pain should be considered as it may help to optimize function and decrease behavioral symptoms among assisted living residents.

This study tested the feasibility, reliability, and validity of the MotionWatch 8 among assisted living residents with and without cognitive impairment. Data from the Dissemination and Implementation of Function Focused Care in Assisted Living Using the Evidence Integration Triangle study were used. The sample included 781 individuals from 85 facilities with a mean age of 89.48 (SD = 7.43) years. The majority were female (71%), White (97%), and overall (44%) had cognitive impairment. A total of 70% were willing to wear the MotionWatch 8. Reliability was supported as there was no difference in time spent in activity across three consecutive wear days. Validity was based on hypothesis testing, and function was associated with counts of activity at baseline (p = .001) and 4 months (p = .001). Those with cognitive impairment engaged in less physical activity (p = .04). The MotionWatch 8 is a useful option for measuring physical activity in older adults with and without cognitive impairment.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the Function Focused Care for Assisted Living Using the Evidence Integration Triangle (FFC-AL-EIT) intervention. DESIGN: FFC-AL-EIT was a randomized controlled pragmatic trial including 85 sites and 794 residents. INTERVENTION: FFC-AL-EIT was implemented by a Research Nurse Facilitator working with a facility champion and stakeholder team for 12 months to increase function and physical activity among residents. FFC-AL-EIT included: (Step I) Environment and Policy Assessments; (Step II) Edusscation; (Step III) Establishing Resident Function Focused Care Service Plans; and (Step IV) Mentoring and Motivating. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: The age of participants was 89.48 (SD=7.43), the majority was female (N=561, 71%) and white (N=771, 97%). METHODS: Resident measures, obtained at baseline, four and 12 months, included function, physical activity, and performance of function focused care. Setting outcomes, obtained at baseline and 12 months, included environment and policy assessments and service plans. RESULTS: Reach was based on 85 of 90 sites that volunteered (94%) participating. Effectiveness was based on less decline in function (p

The purpose of this study was to test the reliability and validity of the Checklist for Function-Focused Care in Service Plans. Function-focused care is a care approach that optimizes function and physical activity during all care interactions. This study used baseline data from the first cohort of the study titled Dissemination and Implementation of Function-Focused Care for Assisted Living Using the Evidence Integration Triangle (FFC-AL-EIT). A total of 242 participants were recruited from 26 assisted living facilities. The majority of participants were White, female, and unmarried. There was support for internal consistency with an alpha coefficient of .96, interrater reliability with a correlation of .80, construct validity based on Rasch analysis and INFIT statistics ranging from 0.69 to 1.29, and a significant association with function-focused care activities. Although there is some support for reliability and validity of the measure, modifications are recommended to add more challenging items.

BackgroundThere continues to be a belief among nurses, patients, and families that physical activity increases the risk of falling.PurposeThe purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that controlling for age, function, cognition, medication use, gender, comorbidities, and cognition, residents who are exposed to Function Focused Care for Assisted Living (FFC-AL-EIT) and engage in moderate levels of physical activity would not be more likely to fall.MethodsThis was a secondary data analysis using data from the first two cohorts of a randomized trial testing FFC-AL-EIT in the United States.ResultsThe study included 381 residents, the majority of whom were female (70%), white (97%), with a mean age of 87.72 (standard deviation = 7.47). Those who engaged in more moderate-intensity physical activity were 1% less likely to fall (odds ratio = .99, p = .03). There was no significant association between exposure to function focused care and falling (odds ratio = 1.58, p = .09).ConclusionThere was no indication that those who were exposed to function focused care or those who engaged in moderate-level physical activity were more likely to fall. In fact, engaging in moderate-level physical activity was noted to be slightly protective of falling.

The purpose of the current study was to test for gender differences among residents living in assisted living settings. This was a secondary data analysis using data from the first 64 facilities participating in the ongoing Function Focused Care for Assisted Living study using the Evidence Integration Triangle (FFC-AL-EIT). A total of 593 residents were recruited. Differences by gender with regard to function, physical activity, falls, total number of medications, and satisfaction with assisted living were tested using multivariate analysis of variance. There were 166 (28%) men and 427 (72%) women with a mean age of 88 ( SD = 7.5 years). Participants had five ( SD = 2) comorbidities and took on average 6.88 medications ( SD = 3.47). Participants had moderate functional impairment with a mean of 64.13 ( SD = 19.09) on the Barthel Index and engaged in 43.8 ( SD = 76.12) minutes daily of moderate level physical activity. Women reported higher satisfaction with activities (4.32 [ SD = 1.14]) than men (3.85 [ SD = 1.51]), and women received more medications than men (7.09 [ SD = 3.51] vs. 6.34 [ SD = 3.31]). Current study findings suggest that deprescribing may be particularly important for women versus men and focusing on expanding activity options to include those preferred by men should be considered in assisted living settings. [ Research in Gerontological Nursing, 13 (1), 31–40.]

Objective The purpose of this study was to describe medication use and polypharmacy in assisted living settings. We hypothesized that: 1) age, gender, race, setting, multi-morbidity, and cognitive status would influence polypharmacy; and 2) polypharmacy would be associated with falls, emergency room visits, and hospitalizations. Design This was a descriptive study using data from a larger study testing the Dissemination and Implementation of Function Focused Care for Assisted Living (FFC-AL-EIT). Setting Participants were recruited from 26 assisted living settings. Participants A total of 242 individuals for cohort 1 consented and completed baseline data collection. Interventions Data were obtained from participant medical records, observations, and input from staff. Main outcome measure(s) Age, gender, race, ethnicity, comorbidities, cognitive status, medications, falls, emergency room visits, hospitalizations, function based on the Barthel Index and physical activity using the MotionWatch 8. Results Participants had a mean age of 86.86 (standard deviation [SD] = 7.0), the majority were women (n = 179, 74%) and white (n = 233, 96%), with five (SD = 2) diagnoses. The mean number of drugs was seven (SD = 3.56), and 51% were exposed to polypharmacy. The mean Barthel Index score was 63.06 (SD = 20.20), and they engaged in 111,353 (SD = 87,262) counts of activity daily. Fifty-eight residents fell at least once (24%), 22 were sent to the hospital (9%), and 32 (13%) to the emergency room. Neither hypothesis was supported. Conclusion Continued research is needed to explore the factors that influence polypharmacy. Identification of these factors will help guide deprescribing so that medication management does not harm older adults physically or cause unnecessary financial burden.

The purpose of this study was to consider the feasibility, reliability, and validity of MotionWatch 8. A total of 249 residents were recruited from 26 assisted living settings. Data collection included demographics, comorbidities, function (Barthel Index), physical activity (MotionWatch 8), and falls. The mean age of participants was 86.86 ( SD = 7.0), the majority were women 179 (74%) and White ( N = 232, 96%). A total of 86% of participants wore the MotionWatch 8. There were no significant differences in physical activity over 3 days of testing. The MotionWatch 8 findings were significantly associated with activities of daily living (ADL) function. There were no significant differences in ADL function or physical activity between those who did and did not fall. The study provides additional support for the feasibility, reliability, and validity of the MotionWatch 8 and confirms that older adults living in assisted living settings spend the majority of their time in sedentary activity.