Demography, Population, and Ecology Commons^™

Assessment Of Pneumonia In Older Adults: Effect Of Functional Status, Lona Mody, Rongjun Sun, Suzanne F. Bradley

Sociology & Criminology Faculty Publications

OBJECTIVES:

Evaluate the effect of preadmission functional status on severity of pneumonia, length of hospital stay (LOS), and all-cause 30-day and 1-year mortality of adults aged 60 and older and to understand the effect of pneumonia on short-term functional impairment.

DESIGN:

Prospective cohort study.

SETTING:

University hospital.

PARTICIPANTS:

One hundred twelve patients with radiograph-proven pneumonia (mean age 74.6) were enrolled.

MEASUREMENTS:

Functional status and comorbidities were assessed using the Functional Autonomy Measurement System (SMAF) and Charlson Comorbidity Index. Clinical information was used to calculate the Pneumonia Prognostic Index (PPI).

RESULTS:

Eighty-four (75%) patients were functionally independent (FI) before admission, …

Worry About Medical Care, Family Support, And Depression Of The Elders In Urban China, Rongjun Sun

Sociology & Criminology Faculty Publications

This study examines the role of family support in reducing the elders’s depression in the face of the perceived inadequate public medical care in urban China. Using data from the Survey on Aging and Intergenerational Relations in Baoding City, this article investigates the overall depression level, somatic symptoms, and affective symptoms, respectively. The findings suggest that perceived inadequate public medical care, which results from dramatic changes in China’s socioeconomic transformation, has a stressful impact on all measures of depression. Family support, by its structure and function, shows both direct and moderating effects in counteracting …