Table 1.
Characteristics of Study Participants, by Site
| Characteristic | North Carolina (N = 46) |
Oregon (N = 20) |
p-value |
|---|---|---|---|
| n (%) or Mean (SD) | |||
| Age | p=0.002 | ||
| < 65 years | 6 (13%) | 0 (0) | |
| 65 – 79 years | 24 (52%) | 4 (20%) | |
| ≥ 80 years | 16 (35%) | 16 (80%) | |
| Gender | p<0.001 | ||
| Male | 34 (74%) | 1 (5%) | |
| Female | 12 (26%) | 19 (95%) | |
| Race | p=0.013 | ||
| African American | 16 (35%) | 1 (5%) | |
| White | 30 (65%) | 19 (95%) | |
| Educational attainment* | p=0.107 | ||
| ≥ 12th grade | 17 (49%) | 10 (77%) | |
| < 12th grade | 18 (51%) | 3 (23%) | |
| Marital status* | p=0.038 | ||
| Never married | 6 (14%) | 1 (5%) | |
| Married | 11 (25%) | 3 (15%) | |
| Widowed | 16 (36%) | 15 (75%) | |
| Divorced/separated | 11 (25%) | 1 (5%) | |
| Functional status† | |||
| Need assistance in bathing | 26 (58%) | 18 (90%) | p=0.011 |
| Need assistance in locomotion | 6 (13%) | 6 (30%) | p=0.162 |
| Need assistance in eating | 10 (22%) | 6 (30%) | p=0.538 |
| Incontinent of urine | 25 (54%) | 2 (10%) | p<0.001 |
| Cognitive impairment‡ | p=0.365 | ||
| Mild | 3 (7%) | 0 (0%) | |
| Moderate | 10 (22%) | 8 (40%) | |
| Severe | 22 (48%) | 9 (45%) | |
| Very severe | 11 (24%) | 3 (15%) | |
| Medication use | |||
| One or more antidepressants§ | 23 (50%) | 14 (70%) | p=0.180 |
| One or more anxiolytics§ | 14 (30%) | 2 (10%) | p=0.118 |
| One or more antipsychotics§ | 32 (70%) | 8 (40%) | p=0.031 |
| Sedative load∥ | 10.5 (10.8) | 4.5 (3.6) | p=0.001 |
| Analgesic load∥ | 2.8 (3.4) | 2.4 (3.4) | p=0.656 |
Data on educational status were missing for 11 subjects in North Carolina and 7 in Oregon; data on marital status was missing for 2 in North Carolina.
Data on bathing functional status were missing on 1 subject in North Carolina. A study participant was defined as needing assistance if the staff nurse informant rated the individual as needing limited or full assistance. Residents were considered to be incontinent of urine if they were incontinent ≥ 2 times/ week. Percentages sum to >100 because items are not mutually exclusive.
Based on MDS-COGS score,28 with mild=0–1, moderate=2–4, severe=5–8 and very severe=9–10. For 3 residents for whom MDS-COGS was unavailable, cognitive impairment was based on MMSE29 score and consultation with hospital psychologist.
Use of a given medication class required a study participant to have received a medication in that class for the majority (11 or more days) of at least one 3-week intervention period. Percentages sum to >100 because drug categories are not mutually exclusive.
Daily sedation loads for each resident were calculated based on dosage(s) received and drug potency (scored as 0, 1, 3, or 6), summed across all medications a given resident received. Means (SD) shown here are based on daily loads averaged across all intervention periods for a given resident. Analgesic load was calculated in same way except that drug potencies were scored as 0, 1, 3, 6, 9. See further details in text.