Hospital Outcomes Project for the Elderly (HOPE): rationale and design for a prospective pooled analysis.
OBJECTIVE
To describe a collaborative investigation that is based on a series of six clinical studies aimed at reducing functional decline in the acutely-ill hospitalized elderly.


METHODS
A prospective, multicenter pooled analysis project involving collection of a common set of data from a group of related but distinct intervention trials with similar objectives.


METHODS
Five university-affiliated hospitals and one community hospital.


METHODS
Elderly patients (age minimums from 65 to 75 years) admitted for a range of acute illnesses.


METHODS
Site-specific interventions include exercise and physical therapy; developing and implementing methods to improve detection and evaluation of delirious patients; a multidisciplinary geriatric care unit; a multidisciplinary intervention implemented in-hospital that includes some post-discharge care; and a nursing-centered geriatric care program.


METHODS
Functional status.


CONCLUSIONS
The prospective, multicenter design of the Hospital Outcomes Project for the Elderly (HOPE) provides an innovative approach for analysis of hospital outcomes in the elderly. Although differences in study populations and interventions exist, qualitative comparisons across sites will enhance generalizability and will provide a great opportunity to examine consistency among the sites. The HOPE pooled analysis project will impart greater statistical power to detect the primary and secondary outcomes compared with previous single-center trials that have assessed interventions related to functional decline in the hospitalized elderly.
Margitić
S E
SE
Department of Public Health Sciences, Bowman Gray School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC 27157-1063.
Inouye
S K
SK
Thomas
J L
JL
Cassel
C K
CK
Regenstreif
D I
DI
Kowal
J
J
D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D006302:Health Services Research / Q000379:methods*; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D011446:Prospective Studies; D014481:United States