Table 1.
Baseline characteristics of nursing home residents (n = 1,042)
| Intervention group (n = 439) | Control group (n = 603) | |
|---|---|---|
| Participants per study centre, n | ||
| Halle (Saale) | 185 | 192 |
| Lübeck | 104 | 212 |
| Witten | 150 | 199 |
| Gender, n (%) | ||
| Female | 319 (72.7) | 443 (73.5) |
| Age (years) | 84.0 (±9.5) | 84.1 (±9.1) |
| Mean (standard deviation) | ||
| Minimum–maximum | 45–103 | 40–105 |
| Length of residence (weeks), median (2 miss) | 115.6 | 119.7 |
| Care dependency categorya, n (%) | ||
| None | 4 (0.9) | 2 (0.3) |
| Level 0 | 5 (1.1) | 11 (1.8) |
| Level 1 (considerable) | 152 (34.6) | 188 (31.2) |
| Level 2 (severe) | 186 (42.4) | 255 (42.3) |
| Level 3 (most severe) | 92 (20.9) | 147 (24.4) |
| Residents with at least one antipsychotic drug, % (n) | 44.6 (196) | 39.8 (240) |
| Residents with cognitive impairment | ||
| (DSS > 4)b, n (%) (3 miss) | 253 (58.0) | 324 (53.7) |
| Dementia Screening Scale (DSS)b (3 miss) | ||
| Mean (standard deviation) | 5.9 (±4.6) | 5.8 (±4.8) |
| Minimum–maximum | 0–14 | 0–14 |
| Residents with agitated behaviour (6 miss) | ||
| (CMAI>25)c, n (%) | 245 (56.5) | 341 (56.6) |
| Agitated behaviour (CMAI)c | ||
| Mean (standard deviation) | 31.4 (±9.9) | 31.4 (±10.3) |
| Minimum–maximum | 25–86 | 25–90 |
| Quality of life (QoL-AD)d, mean (standard deviation) minimum–maximum | ||
| Self-assessment | 33.4 (±5.3) | 34.1 (±5.9) |
| 20–48 | 18–49 | |
| Proxy assessment | 31.1 (±6.8) | 30.7 (±5.9) |
| 13–52 | 13–46 | |
| Living in a dementia-specific unit, n (%) | 81 (18.5) | 67 (11.1) |
| Legal guardian, n (%) (1 miss) | 156 (35.5) | 226 (37.5) |
| Physical restraintse, n (%) (8 miss) | 61 (14.0) | 94 (15.7) |
| ≥1 fall in preceding 4 weeks, n (%) (1 miss) | 45 (10.3) | 74 (12.3) |
aResidents’ need for care was assessed by the medical service of the German social care insurance; Need for care in performing activities of daily living and household tasks was defined as Level 0: <90 min/day, Level 1: at least 90 min/day, Level 2: at least 3 h/day, Level 3: at least 4 h/day.
bDSS: Dementia Screening Scale (total score ranges from 0 to 14; higher scores indicate more severe cognitive impairments).
cCMAI: Cohen-Mansfield Agitation Inventory (total score ranges from 25 to 175, higher scores indicate higher frequencies of manifestations).
dQoL-AD: Quality of Life-Alzheimer’s disease scale (total score ranges from 13 to 52, higher scores indicate better QoL); valid measurements included intervention group: n = 433 (self: 147, proxy: 286); control group: n = 603 (self: 229, proxy: 374).
eBedrails, fixed tables, belts in bed or chair, other physical restraints.