Table 1.
Demographic, Diagnostic, and Prior Utilization Characteristics of the Study Population
| Variables | 1997 Sample (n=700) | 1998 Sample (n=704) | P-Value (2-Tailed) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Administrative Data | |||
| 80 years of age or older (%) | 52.1 | 53.3 | 0.673 |
| Medicaid recipient (%) | 21.9 | 22.7 | 0.695 |
| Male (%) | 41.9 | 40.8 | 0.678 |
| Heart disease (%) | 65.8 | 62.8 | 0.275 |
| Hypertension (%) | 67.7 | 64.6 | 0.256 |
| Prior stroke (%) | 20.3 | 20.7 | 0.866 |
| Prior hip fracture (%) | 9.2 | 8.3 | 0.561 |
| Cancer (%) | 23.3 | 23.0 | 0.899 |
| Diabetes (%) | 21.8 | 22.5 | 0.769 |
| Emphysema (%) | 24.0 | 22.6 | 0.592 |
| Number of prior hospitalizations | 1.37±0.78 | 1.32±0.70 | 0.294 |
| Average length of prior hospitalizations (days) | 7.83±10.00 | 7.72±8.57 | 0.379 |
| Number of prior skilled nursing facility stays | 0.09±0.37 | 0.05±0.24 | 0.010 |
| Average length of prior skilled nursing facility stays (days) | 2.43±11.79 | 1.31±8.79 | 0.007 |
| Charlson comorbidity index (32) | 1.26±2.33 | 1.34±2.51 | 0.972 |
| Self-Reported Data | |||
| Alzheimer's disease (%) | 7.0 | 5.3 | 0.208 |
| Self-rated general health | 0.827 | ||
| 1=Excellent (%) | 7.2 | 6.3 | |
| 2=Very good (%) | 17.0 | 19.1 | |
| 3=Good (%) | 30.2 | 30.4 | |
| 4=Fair (%) | 25.3 | 25.4 | |
| 5=Poor (%) | 20.3 | 18.8 | |
| Visual Impairment | 0.910 | ||
| 1=None (%) | 48.0 | 48.9 | |
| 2=Little (%) | 34.6 | 34.5 | |
| 3=Lot of (%) | 17.5 | 16.6 | |
| Function score (1–5)* | 2.84±1.23 | 2.86±1.22 | 0.769 |
| Assistance with ADLs score (0–1)** | 0.26±0.32 | 0.24±0.31 | 0.447 |
| Unmarried (%) | 56.2 | 57.0 | 0.775 |
*
Function score was constructed by averaging the responses (1=No, 2=A little, 3=Some, 4=A lot, and 5=Unable) for various physical functional tasks (lifting, reaching, stooping, and walking a quarter of a mile).
**
Assistance with Activities of Daily Living (ADLs) score was constructed by averaging the indicators (1=Yes, 0=No) for having difficulty in the individual ADLs categories (bathing, dressing, eating walking, using the toilet, transferring in or out of bed or chairs).