Aim: To examine the feasibility of implementing a multi-faceted intervention in community-dwelling seniors who have been identified as at risk for frailty by family health teams.
Overview: TRIAGE recruited 44 individuals who participated in the Health TAPESTRY initiative. Participants are 70 years and older and were identified as pre-frail/frail or “at risk” for nutrition, social isolation, or physical activity. Primary clinical outcomes are being collected at baseline and 24 weeks; feasibility outcomes (recruitment, retention, adherence, fidelity, resources) are tracked throughout. Clinical outcomes include change in frailty (Fried, GERAS Fit-Frailty Index), mobility (Short Performance Physical Battery), physical fitness (Seniors Fitness Test), and quality of life (EQ-5D). Qualitative methods will be used to examine acceptability, facilitators and barriers.
Components for managing frailty:
- Goal-focused exercise program/coaching
- Nutritional support including dietary assessment
- Vitamin D supplementation
- Medication review to reduce inappropriate medications
- Psychosocial support including a personalized map of community resources
Results: Participants will complete the TRIAGE pilot study in December 2016 and results will be disseminated in early 2017.
Scope: Proactively managing or slowing frailty may alleviate some of the burden on our health system, including referrals to geriatric services and unnecessary emergency room visits. The study will assess whether a multi-faceted intervention targeting frailty can feasibly be implemented within a primary care setting. Results could be used to guide larger-scale studies with the potential to be developed into a model of care implementable across Canada.
Read more about TAPESTRY-TRIAGE from HHS Share Stories.
Investigators
- Dr. Courtney Kennedy
- Larkin Lamarche
- Dr. Alexandra Papaioannou
- Dr. Doug Oliver
- Dr. Lisa Dolovich
- Sarah Radcliffe
- Dr. Ruta Valaitis
