Functional Assessment in the Older Adult

• Conducting comprehensive and interdisciplinary geriatric assessments of physical, psychosocial, and functional status at admission.

• Encourage activity during hospitalization (and at home) with structured exercises, progressive resistance strength training, and walking programs, in coordination with rehabilitation therapies (physical and occupational).

• Implement early mobilization for acute and critically ill patient based establish protocols.

• Ensure assistive devices are in used: hearing aids in place; glasses on; walker or cane.

• Use of environmental enhancements for eldercare including handrails, uncluttered hallways, large clocks and calendars, elevated toilet seats, and door levers.

• Integrate established protocols aimed at reducing the risk of geriatric syndromes and improve self care, continence, nutrition, mobility, sleep, skin care, cognition, and minimizing adverse effect of selective procedure (e.g. Urinary catherization).

• Evaluated the appropriateness of medications, minimizing the use of sedative-hypnotic medications, and ensuring correct medication dosing; monitoring responses to drug therapy and ensuring medication reconciliation during hospitalization and at discharge.

• Promote safety while encouraging independence and maintaining dignity

• Integrate geriatric interdisciplinary team training with use of geriatric specialists and acute care for elderly and geriatric resource nurses models of care

• Consider participation in best practice models for elder care (American Academy of Nursing’s Expert Panel on Acute and Critical Care, 2007).