Gerontology

The purpose of this secondary data analysis was to evaluate the adverse events associated with a restorative care intervention (Res-Care) in nursing home (NH) residents. A randomized controlled repeated-measure design and generalized estimating equations were used to evaluate status at baseline and 4 and 12 months after initiation of the Res-Care Intervention. The Res-Care Intervention was a 2-tiered self-efficacy-based intervention focused on motivating nursing assistants to actively engage residents in functional and physical activities.

Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) programs are becoming increasingly common, but have not been studied in low income minority older populations. The purpose of this study was to understand which parts of MBSR were most important to practicing MBSR members of this population, and to understand whether they apply their training to daily challenges. There were three focus groups with 13 current members of an MBSR program. Participants were African American women over the age of 60 in a low-income housing residence.

 OBJECTIVE: To compare the effects of Tai Chi (TC, n = 37) and Western exercise (WE, n = 39) with an attention-control group (C, n = 56) on physical and cognitive functioning in healthy adults age 69 +/- 5.8 yr, in a 2-phase randomized trial.
METHODS: TC and WE involved combined class and home-based protocols. Physical functioning included balance, strength, flexibility, and cardiorespiratory endurance. Cognitive functioning included semantic fluency and digit-span tests. Data were analyzed using intention-to-treat analysis.

BACKGROUND: This study examined the construct validity and reliability of the new 2-item Stanford Brief Activity Survey (SBAS).

 Over one-third of long-term care (LTC) residents exhibit moderate-to-severe cognitive impairment. These residents are more likely to be inactive, require assistance with activities of daily living, have medical comorbidities, and be exposed to fewer opportunities to engage in functional and physical activities than peers who are cognitively intact or have only mild cognitive deficits.

 In the ongoing Interdisciplinary Nursing Quality Research Initiative Program study, we are testing the impact of Function-Focused Care, which is an approach to care in which we work with assisted living (AL) residents and staff to optimize the functional and physical activities of residents during daily activity. The purpose of this article is to evaluate life satisfaction of AL residents with a focus on the impact of physical activity.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to test the feasibility and impact of a 2-tiered motivational intervention, the Restorative Care Intervention for the Cognitively Impaired (Res-Care-CI), on nursing home residents with moderate to severe cognitive impairment. DESIGN: Single-group repeated measures study. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: Participants were 46 nursing home residents with moderate to severe cognitive impairment at a single nursing home designed for individuals with dementia.

OBJECTIVES: This study considered the factors that facilitated or prevented nursing assistants (NAs) from engaging in restorative care activities. DESIGN: This was a qualitative study using a focus group methodology. SETTING: Study participants were recruited from 6 nursing homes. PARTICIPANTS: Participants were nursing assistants (NAs) from a study testing the implementation of a restorative care intervention (Res-Care) study. Of the 244 NAs recruited from the 6 treatment sites, 179 were available at 12 months and 93 (52%) participated in the study.

More than half of individuals diagnosed with dementia experience significant functional limitations. A restorative philosophy of care focuses on the restoration and/or maintenance of physical function and helps older adults to compensate for functional impairments so the the highest level of function is obtained and complications of physical dependance are minimized.