Effects of a Structured Occupational Therapy Intervention in an Acute Geriatric Unit

Complejo Hospitalario Universitario de Albacete

Status: Completed

Conditions: Occupational Therapy

Treatments: Other: Occupational therapy intervention

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT01094002

PI02069-00

Details and patient eligibility

About

Objectives: To compare the benefits of structured occupational therapy intervention by a single geriatric therapist with the benefits of the conventional treatment model in the functional recovery of patients admitted to an acute geriatric unit.

Design: Non-pharmacological randomised clinical trial. Setting: Acute Geriatric Unit, Albacete, Spain. Participants: The trial included 400 patients admitted consecutively over 6 months to an acute geriatric unit for acute illness or exacerbation of a chronic medical condition. Participants were randomised to the occupational therapy intervention or conventional treatment model group; 198 patients received occupational therapy. All patients completed the study. The mean age was 83.5, and 56.8% were women.

Interventions: Needs assessment, iatrogenic prevention, retraining in basic and instrumental activities of daily living, assessment of need for technical aids, instruction for primary caregiver in patient mobilisation techniques, and structured social and occupational motivation as per protocol in three groups of patients (cardiopulmonary disease, stroke, and other conditions) 5 days a week, 30 to 45 minutes a day over the entire hospital stay.

Enrollment: 400 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 65+ years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• All patients age 65 or older consecutively admitted to the acute geriatric unit at the Complejo Hospitalario Universitario in Albacete, Spain, between November 2002 and June 2003 for an acute medical illness or exacerbation of a previous chronic condition

Exclusion criteria

• None

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Double Blind

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400 participants in 2 patient groups

Occupational therapy intervention (OTI)

Experimental group

Description:

198 subjects. The OTI schedule consisted of a daily 45-minute session, Monday through Friday, for the duration of hospitalisation. Activities were carried out in a structured manner and varied according to need and day of admission. On the first day, the patient's needs were analysed, including the need for iatrogenic prevention, retraining in basic and instrumental activities of daily living, technical aids, instruct the primary caregiver in patient mobilisation techniques, and social and occupational motivation. All OTI participants received an average of 5 sessions during hospitalisation.

Treatment:

Other: Occupational therapy intervention

Conventional treatment model group

No Intervention group

Description:

202 subjects. All subjects received medical treatment, nursing care, physical therapy, and social assistance in accordance with the usual practice of the geriatrics unit.