A Geriatric Mobile Team for Nursing Home Residents: a Feasibility Pilot Study (GerMoT)

Université Catholique de Louvain

Status: Not yet enrolling

Conditions: Geriatric Assessment; Nursing Home Resident

Treatments: Other: Geriatric assessment

Study type: Observational

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT06873919

40025834 (Other Identifier)

GerMoT

Details and patient eligibility

About

Nursing home (NH) residents have complex healthcare needs. Barriers to collaboration hinder the delivery of high-quality care in nursing homes. To bridge the gap between hospital-based and NH-based care, various innovative approaches have been proposed, including geriatric mobile teams. In Belgium, geriatric expertise has long been confined to hospital settings. Until recently, no specific organization existed for outpatient geriatric assessment, particularly for NH residents. In April 2024, the National Institute for Health and Disability Insurance (INAMI) introduced a new reimbursement code for geriatric consultations in NHs, promoting the development of extramural geriatric activities. However, evidence on the effectiveness of mobile geriatric teams remains limited, particularly regarding hospitalization prevention.

The geriatrics department of CHU UCL Namur is implementing a one-year pilot project involving a mobile team composed of a geriatrician and a nurse to conduct geriatric assessments in the three nursing homes. This non-randomized pilot project aims to establish a new standard of care for residents selected by their general practitioner, leveraging the new reimbursement code. The project is accompanied by a clinical study assessing the feasibility, effectiveness, and acceptability of this intervention. Prospectively collected data will also help define key indicators for a future large-scale study focused on cost-effectiveness.

Enrollment: 200 estimated patients

Sex: All

Ages: 70+ years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Patients aged over 70 years

• Presenting with one or more of the following conditions:

  • Difficulties in establishing an advance care planning
  • Medical complexity (multiple specialists, repeated hospitalizations)
  • Polypharmacy
  • Recurrent falls
  • Unmanageable behavioral disorders
  • Weight loss
  • Memory impairment

Exclusion criteria

• Patients with an unstable medical condition requiring urgent care
• Patients under 70 years old
• Patients whose condition requires examinations or treatments available only in a hospital setting

Trial design

200 participants in 1 patient group

Experimental group

Description:

Nursing home resident with a geriatric consultation at her place of residence

Treatment:

Other: Geriatric assessment