Functional trajectories of older patients admitted to an Acute Care Unit for Elders.

Aims And Objectives: To describe the functional trajectories of older medical inpatients and to identify factors associated with overall and in-hospital functional decline.

Background: Functional decline during a hospital stay is an important clinical outcome because independence remains a major determinant of older persons' quality of life and health care demands.

Design And Methods: Participants (n = 189) were admitted to the Acute Care Unit for Elders of a Swiss academic hospital and were aged 65 years and older.

[How to prevent functional decline: an acute care integrated model for the elderly].

Hospitalization in older patients is frequently associated with functional decline. Hospital factors and inadapted process of care are factors leading to this decline. Acute care units specifically developed for older patients can prevent functional decline.