Table 1.
Characteristics of Study Patients at Home Health Care Admission (n=374,123)
| Characteristic | % or Mean (s.d.) |
|---|---|
| Predisposing variables | |
| Age (years) | 76.5 (10.8) |
| Females | 63.9 |
| Race/Ethnicity | |
| Asian | 1.2 |
| Black | 10.6 |
| Hispanic | 4.2 |
| White | 82.4 |
| Enabling variables | |
| Lives alone | 29.8 |
| Has Medicaid (dually eligible) | 11.6 |
| Need variables | |
| Inpatient stay within 14 days before start of HHC episode | |
| No inpatient stay within previous 14 days | 26.4 |
| Hospital discharge within previous 14 days | 56.2 |
| Rehabilitation facility discharge within previous 14 days | 9.8 |
| SNF discharge within previous 14 days | 7.1 |
| Shortness of breath/dyspnea severity | |
| Never short of breath | 36.5 |
| Walking > 20 ft, stairs | 25.3 |
| Moderate exertion | 22.2 |
| Minimal exertion | 12.7 |
| At Rest (day or night) | 3.2 |
| Pain frequency | |
| No Pain | 37.6 |
| Less often than Daily | 11.4 |
| Daily, but not constantly | 42.6 |
| All the Time | 8.4 |
| Functional disability severity | -0.67 (1.89) |
| Cognitive function severity | |
| Alert/Oriented, focused | 66.9 |
| Requires prompting | 21.0 |
| Requires assistance | 7.8 |
| Requires considerable assistance | 3.1 |
| Totally dependent | 1.2 |
| Depressed | 20.4 |
| Guarded rehabilitation prognosis | 20.2 |
| Primary HHC diagnosis | |
| Osteoarthritis | 6.9 |
| Congestive heart failure | 5.2 |
| Stroke | 5.1 |
| Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease | 3.1 |
| Skin ulcer or wound | 3.1 |
| Type 2 diabetes mellitus | 2.7 |
| Primary HHC diagnosis severity | 2.3 (0.64) |
| Total number of medical conditions | 2.4 (1.5) |
| Environmental variables | |
| U.S. Census Region | |
| West | 14.5 |
| Northeast | 23.0 |
| Midwest | 22.7 |
| South | 39.8 |
| Metropolitan area location | 82.2 |
| Freestanding HHC agency | 64.0 |