Connect-Home transitional care from skilled nursing facilities to home: A stepped wedge, cluster randomized trial.

BACKGROUND: Skilled nursing facility (SNF) patients and their caregivers who transition to home experience complications and frequently return to acute care. We tested the efficacy of the Connect-Home transitional care intervention on patient and caregiver preparedness for care at home, and other patient and caregiver-reported outcomes. METHODS: We used a stepped wedge, cluster-randomized trial design to test the intervention against standard discharge planning (control). The setting was six SNFs and six home health offices in one agency. Participants were 327 dyads of patients discharged from SNF to home and their caregivers; 11.1% of dyads in the control condition and 81.2% in the intervention condition were enrolled after onset of COVID-19. Patients were 63.9% female and mean age was 76.5 years. Caregivers were 73.7% female and mean age was 59.5 years. The Connect-Home intervention includes tools, training, and technical assistance to deliver transitional care in SNFs and patients' homes. Primary outcomes measured at 7 days included patient and caregiver measures of preparedness for care at home, the Care Transitions Measure-15 (patient) and the Preparedness for Caregiving Scale (caregiver). Secondary outcomes measured at 30 and 60 days included the McGill Quality of Life Questionnaire, Life Space Assessment, Zarit Caregiver Burden Scale, Distress Thermometer, and self-reported number of patient days in the ED or hospital in 30 and 60 days following SNF discharge. RESULTS: The intervention was not associated with improvement in patient or caregiver outcomes in the planned analyses. Post-hoc analyses that distinguished between pre- and post-pandemic effects suggest the intervention may be associated with increased patient preparedness for discharge and decreased number of acute care days. CONCLUSIONS: Connect-Home transitional care did not improve outcomes in the planned statistical analysis. Post-hoc findings accounting for COVID-19 impact suggest SNF transitional care has potential to increase patient preparedness and decrease return to acute care.

Dementia and COVID-19 infection control in assisted living in seven states.

BACKGROUND: Assisted living (AL) is the largest residential long-term care provider in the United States, including for persons with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. Despite recognizing the challenge of infection control for persons with dementia, this study of 119 AL communities is the first to describe dementia-relevant COVID-19 infection control across different types of AL communities, and to discuss implications for the future. METHODS: From a parent study sampling frame of 244 AL communities across seven states, 119 administrators provided data about COVID-19 infection control practices and resident behaviors. Data were collected from July 2020 through September 2021. Communities were differentiated based on the presence of beds/units dedicated for persons living with dementia, as being either dementia-specific, mixed, or integrated. Data obtained from administrators related to feasibility of implementing seven infection control practices, and the extent to which residents themselves practiced infection prevention. Analyses compared practices across the three community types. RESULTS: Less than half of administrators found it feasible to close indoor common areas, all community types reported a challenge organizing group activities for safe distancing, and more than half of residents with dementia did not wear a face covering or maintain physical distance from other residents when indicated. Dementia-specific AL communities were generally the most challenged with infection control during COVID-19. CONCLUSION: All AL community types experienced infection control challenges, more so in dementia-specific communities (which generally provide care to persons with more advanced dementia and have fewer private beds). Results indicate a need to bolster infection prevention capacity when caring for this especially vulnerable population, and have implications for care in nursing homes as well.

Nontraditional Small House Nursing Homes Have Fewer COVID-19 Cases and Deaths.

OBJECTIVES: Green House and other small nursing home (NH) models are considered "nontraditional" due to their size (10-12 beds), universal caregivers, and other home-like features. They have garnered great interest regarding their potential benefit to limit Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) infections due to fewer people living, working, visiting, and being admitted to Green House/small NHs, and private rooms and bathrooms, but this assumption has not been tested. If they prove advantageous compared with other NHs, they may constitute an especially promising model as policy makers and providers reinvent NHs post-COVID. DESIGN: This cohort study compared rates of COVID-19 infections, COVID-19 admissions/readmissions, and COVID-19 mortality, among Green House/small NHs with rates in other NHs between January 20, 2020 and July 31, 2020. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: All Green House homes that held a skilled nursing license and received Medicaid or Medicare payment were invited to participate; other small NHs that replicate Green House physical design and operational practices were eligible if they had the same licensure and payer sources. Of 57 organizations, 43 (75%) provided complete data, which included 219 NHs. Comparison NHs (referred to as "traditional NHs") were up to 5 most geographically proximate NHs within 100 miles that had <50 beds and ≥50 beds for which data were available from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Because Department of Veterans Affairs organizations are not required to report to CMS, they were not included. METHODS: Rates per 1000 resident days were derived for COVID-19 cases and admissions, and per 100 COVID-19 positive cases for mortality. A log-rank test compared rates between Green House/small NHs and traditional NHs with <50 beds and ≥50 beds. RESULTS: Rates of all outcomes were significantly lower in Green House/small NHs than in traditional NHs that had <50 beds and ≥50 beds (log-rank test P < .025 for all comparisons). The median (middle value) rates of COVID-19 cases per 1000 resident days were 0 in both Green House/small NHs and NHs <50 beds, while they were 0.06 in NHs ≥50 beds; in terms of COVID-19 mortality, the median rates per 100 positive residents were 0 (Green House/small NHs), 10 (<50 beds), and 12.5 (≥50 beds). Differences were most marked in the highest quartile: 25% of Green House/small NHs had COVID-19 case rates per 1000 resident days higher than 0.08, with the corresponding figures for other NHs being 0.15 (<50 beds) and 0.74 (≥50 beds). CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: COVID-19 incidence and mortality rates are less in Green House/small NHs than rates in traditional NHs with <50 and ≥50 beds, especially among the higher and extreme values. Green House/small NHs are a promising model of care as NHs are reinvented post-COVID.