ArticleThe western journal of emergency medicine2018
Social Disconnection Among Older Adults Receiving Care in the Emergency Department.
Article in The western journal of emergency medicine, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
8 citing papers in PubMed, 14 citations in OpenAlex.
- Exploring differential response to an emergency department-based care transition intervention.The American journal of emergency medicine · 2021Trial
- Association between social isolation and outpatient follow-up in older adults following emergency department discharge.Archives of gerontology and geriatricsTrial
- Article
- Decision-Making in the Admission of Older Patients: A Thematic Analysis From Multiple-Stakeholder Perspectives.Cureus · 2024Article
- Emergency Department-to-Community Transitions of Care: Best Practices for the Older Adult Population.Clinics in geriatric medicine · 2023Review
- 2021 SAEM Consensus Conference Proceedings: Research Priorities for Developing Emergency Department Screening Tools for Social Risks and Needs.The western journal of emergency medicine · 2022Review
- Patient Versus Physician Perceptions of Frailty: A Comparison of Clinical Frailty Scale Scores of Older Adults in the Emergency Department.Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine · 2019Article
- Hospitalization's association with depression in adults over 50 years old: does living arrangement matter? Findings from the Health and Retirement Study.Aging & mental healthArticle
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
introductionSocial disconnection is a public health problem in older adults, as it can lead to decreased quality of life for this population. This study describes the prevalence of social disconnection and patient interest in social resources to address social disconnection among older adults receiving emergency department (ED) care.
methodsWe conducted a cross-sectional survey of community-dwelling older adults (≥65 years) receiving care at two U.S. EDs. We described participant characteristics (demographic, social, and health variables), social disconnection prevalence, and desire for social resources using percentages and 95% confidence intervals. Then, we performed Chi Square tests and logistic regression to determine factors associated with positive screens for social disconnection.
resultsOf 289 participants, 51% were female and the median age was 72 (interquartile range: 69-78). Most (76%) engaged with the community regularly, and 68% reported driving. Regarding social disconnection, a substantial minority of participants reported feeling as if they were burdensome to others (37%); as if they didn't belong (27%); or that people would be better off if they were gone (15%); 52% reported at least one of these. In separate regression analyses, the perceptions of being a burden or better off if gone were each significantly associated with needing help with routine tasks (odds ratio [OR] [5.87, 5.90]); perceived burden was associated with hospitalization in the prior month (OR [2.09]); and low belonging was associated with not engaging in the community regularly (OR [2.50]), not seeing family regularly (OR [3.82]), and difficulty affording food (OR [2.50]). Regarding potential ED referrals, most participants were interested in transportation options (68%), food assistance (58%), and mental health resources (55%). Participants experiencing difficulties affording food were interested in food and housing assistance (p=.03; p=.01).
conclusionOver half of this sample of older ED patients reported feeling socially disconnected. Social and functional health problems are often related and both must be addressed to optimize older ED patient quality of life. Future research should consider the impact of social disconnection on older adults discharged from the ED and work to develop ED services that could refer this population to programs that may decrease social disconnection.
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Registered trials
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