Table 2.
Baseline Health Status and Health Care Utilization of 204 Older Homeless Participants by Housing Status at Follow-Up
| Housing status at follow-up | P value | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Characteristic at baseline | Homeless (n=120) | Housed (n=84) | |
| Outcome measures | |||
| Number of ADL difficulties, No. (%) | 0.60 | ||
| 0 | 81 (68) | 58 (69) | |
| 1–2 | 29 (24) | 22 (26) | |
| 3–5 | 10 (8) | 4 (5) | |
| Number of IADL difficulties, No. (%) | 0.33 | ||
| 0 | 49 (41) | 36 (43) | |
| 1–2 | 52 (43) | 29 (35) | |
| 3–6 | 19 (16) | 19 (23) | |
| Depressive symptoms, mean (SD)a | 8.5 (7.5) | 8.9 (7.3) | 0.70 |
| Symptoms of urinary incontinence, mean (SD)b | 4.4 (5.6) | 4.5 (5.9) | 0.88 |
| Health care utilization, prior year, No. (%) | |||
| Self-reported number of emergency department visits, No. (%) | 0.66 | ||
| 0 | 38 (32) | 24 (29) | |
| 1–3 | 49 (41) | 39 (48) | |
| ≥4 | 32 (27) | 19 (23) | |
| Self-reported number of hospitalizations, median (IQR) | 0 (0, 2) | 0 (0, 1) | 0.20 |
| Other measures of health status and health care utilization | |||
| Health status | |||
| Self-rated general health good, very good, or excellent, No. (%) | 74 (62) | 47 (56) | 0.41 |
| Charlson Comorbidity Index score, No. (%) | 0.89 | ||
| 0 | 47 (39) | 31 (37) | |
| 1–2 | 45 (38) | 31 (37) | |
| ≥3 | 28 (23) | 22 (26) | |
| Depression, lifetime history | 62 (52) | 56 (68) | 0.02 |
| Alcohol use problem, No. (%)c | 21 (18) | 15 (18) | 0.99 |
| Drug use problem, No. (%)d | 19 (16) | 16 (19) | 0.54 |
| Geriatric conditions | |||
| Falls during past year, 1 or more, No. (%) | 62 (52) | 50 (60) | 0.23 |
| Mobility impairment, No. (%)e | 50 (42) | 37 (44) | 0.74 |
| Cognitive status | |||
| MMSE score, mean (SD) | 26.2 (3.2) | 26.3 (3.3) | 0.80 |
| MMSE impairment, No. (%)f | 30 (25) | 22 (26) | 0.87 |
| TMT-B mean (SD) | 132.9 (67.2) | 135.9 (67.3) | 0.77 |
| TMT-B impairment, No. (%)g | 39 (35) | 24 (29) | 0.38 |
| Sensory impairment, No. (%) | |||
| Hearing impairment, self-report | 42 (35) | 23 (28) | 0.27 |
| Visual impairment, self-report | 31 (26) | 30 (36) | 0.13 |
| Health services | |||
| Insurance, No. (%)h | 112 (94) | 81 (98) | 0.31 |
| Medicare | 100 (89) | 73 (90) | 0.85 |
| Medicaid | 24 (21) | 16 (20) | 0.78 |
| Military | 14 (13) | 10 (12) | 0.97 |
| Private | 1 (1) | 2 (3) | 0.57 |
| Usual source of medical care, No. (%) | 79 (68) | 68 (84) | 0.009 |
Abbreviations: ADL, Activity of Daily Living; IADL, Instrumental Activity of Daily Living; MMSE, Mini Mental State Examination; TMT-B, Trail Making Test Part B.
Depressive symptoms measured using the 9-item Patient Health Questionnaire (range, 0–27; lower is better).
Symptoms of urinary incontinence measured using the International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire (range, 0–21; lower is better).
Alcohol use problem defined as an Addiction Severity Index score ≥0.17.
Drug use problem defined as an Addiction Severity Index score ≥0.10.
Mobility impairment defined as self-reported difficulty walking.
MMSE impairment defined as an MMSE score <24.
TMT-B impairment defined as a test duration >1.5 standard deviations above population-based norms, or as stopping the test early.
Percentages for type of insurance add to >100%, as some participants had more than one type of insurance.