ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Frailty is unevenly distributed across the world but also within different populations in the same country. OBJECTIVES: This study sought to identify frailty in former immigrant workers, known as Chibanis, living in an immigrant hostel in Marseille. The secondary objective was to describe health care access, as well as any chronic diseases reported. DESIGN, PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: Our descriptive, observational, monocentric study conducted from January to April 2021 included 67 Chibanis, living in an immigrant hostel in Marseille. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS: Almost all this population (97%), with a median age of 77 years, presented at least one frailty criterion: 7.5% were malnourished, 55.2% had a grip strength of < 27 kg, and 41.8% were on multiple drugs. Majority of Chibanis (86.6%) had multimorbidity. CONCLUSION: Identifying frailty in this population of Chibanis must be proposed through a specific, adapted care pathway including referral to a specialist.