Faculty Bibliography

Background/UNASSIGNED:Women with Parkinson's disease (PD) are more likely to be older, have greater disease severity and comorbidities, and yet are less likely to receive care from a neurologist, as compared with men with PD. Within the PD population, homebound individuals are a particularly vulnerable group facing significant barriers to care, yet within this understudied population, sex-related differences have not been reported. Purpose/UNASSIGNED:To identify and describe differences in homebound men and women with advanced PD and related disorders, participating in an interdisciplinary home visit program. Patients and methods/UNASSIGNED:This was an exploratory analysis of homebound patients seen between February 2014 and July 2016 using data collected via in-person interviews and chart review. Results/UNASSIGNED:=0.05). Conclusion/UNASSIGNED:The role of the caregiver in facilitating safe aging-in-place is crucial. Among homebound individuals with advanced PD, women were far more likely to live alone. The absence of a spouse or care partner may be due in part to variable sex-based life expectancies. Our findings suggest that homebound women with advanced PD may face greater barriers to accessing support.

Background/UNASSIGNED:The purpose of this 6-week intervention was to test the feasibility and acceptability of implementing a telehealth-adapted Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) at a senior center. Methods/UNASSIGNED: = 16) attended weekly interactive webinars. At each measurement time point, participants completed questionnaires covering lifestyle, physical activity, quality of life, and food records and wore physical activity trackers. Qualitative data were gathered from 2 focus groups inviting all 16 participants with 13 and 10 participants attending, respectively. Results/UNASSIGNED:value = 0.001). Conclusion/UNASSIGNED:The feasibility of providing DPP via webinar appears to be high based on the retention and attendance rates. Similar to other behavioral interventions engaging older adults, recruitment rates were low. Acceptability was evidenced by high attendance at the intervention sessions and feedback from participants during focus group sessions. The intervention efficacy should be evaluated based on CDC criteria for program recognition in a larger scale randomized trial. Trial registration/UNASSIGNED:NCT03524404. Registered 14 May 2018-retrospectively registered. Trial protocol will be provided by the corresponding author upon request.

Background: Patients with advanced kidney disease have an elevated symptom burden, increased mortality, and poor quality of life. While palliative care can address these issues, nephrology patients infrequently receive such care. To address this, we implemented an ambulatory kidney palliative care program. We describe our initial outcomes.
Method(s): Utilizing chart abstractions, we characterized the clinic population and symptom burden for patients seen from May 6, 2016-July 6, 2018.
Result(s): Ninety-four patients were referred; 74 (78.7%) patients seen. Forty (54.1%) had follow-up appointments (range 2-13). Mean patient age was 72.7 +/-16 years with 32 (43.2%) on dialysis. The mean symptom burden (n=65) was 12 (+/- 4.9) symptoms (out of 17) with mean severity of 2 (range 0-4), representing moderate severity. The most common physical symptoms were nausea (78%), dyspnea (72%), pain (68%) and itch (66%). Eighty-seven percent reported anxiety and 73% reported depression. There was no difference in symptom burden between patients on dialysis and those on conservative management (n=22). Patients on conservative management were significantly older and had more comorbidities. By visit two, there was a significant reduction in global symptom score (21.9 vs 19.0, p=0.01) in addition to a reduction in anxiety (2.1 vs 1.7, p=0.03), vomiting (0.8 vs 0.2, p=0.04), and restless legs syndrome (1.3 vs 0.8, p = 0.02).
Conclusion(s): Patients with serious kidney disease treated in a kidney palliative care clinic have a high symptom burden regardless of treatment choice. The decision to pursue conservative management is more prevalent in older patients with more comorbidities. Follow up visits to the clinic demonstrated a decrease in symptom burden, suggesting that a dedicated kidney-palliative care clinic may be successful in managing symptoms and addressing unmet need

More than 13 million persons in the United States aged 65 and older have cardiovascular disease (CVD), and this population is expected to increase exponentially over the next several decades. In the absence of clinical studies that would inform how best to manage this population, there is an urgent need for collaborative, thoughtful approaches to their care. Although cardiologists are traditionally regarded as leaders in the care of older adults with CVD, these individuals have multiple comorbidities, physiological differences, and distinct goals of care than younger patients that require a specialized geriatric lens. Thus, collaboration is needed between geriatricians, cardiologists, and other specialists to address the unique needs of this growing population. Accordingly, clinicians at New York University Langone Health and School of Medicine established a monthly Geriatric Cardiology Conference to foster an integrative approach to the care of older adults with CVD by uniting specialists across disciplines to collaborate on treatment strategies. At each conference, an active case is discussed and analyzed in detail, and a consensus is reached among participants regarding optimal treatment strategies. The conference attracts faculty and trainees at multiple levels from geriatrics, cardiology, and cardiothoracic surgery. The model may serve as a paradigm for other institutions moving towards geriatric-informed care of older adults with CVD.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a complex, multisymptom, neurodegenerative disease affecting primarily older adults. With progression, many individuals become homebound and removed from coordinated, expert care, resulting in excess morbidity, mortality, and healthcare expenditures in acute care settings and institutions. Home visit care models have achieved the triple aim of improving individual and population health while reducing costs in many frail, community-dwelling geriatric cohorts. This study details a novel, interdisciplinary home visit program specifically designed for individuals with PD and related disorders and their family caregivers built upon best practice principles in the care of multimorbid older adults. At each quarterly home visit, a movement disorders-trained neurologist, social worker, and nurse work in parallel with the individual and caregiver to complete a history, physical, detailed medication reconciliation, psychosocial needs assessment, and home safety assessment. A comprehensive, person-centered plan is agreed upon, referrals to community resources are made, standardized documentation is shared, and follow-up communication is instituted. In the first 2 years, 272 visits were conducted with 85 individuals who represent one of the oldest, most disabled PD populations reported. Satisfaction with and retention in the program were high. This study represents the first translation of the success of interdisciplinary and home-based geriatric care models to a population with a specific neurological disease. Preliminary evidence supports the need for such programs in vulnerable populations. Future studies will prospectively assess person-centered outcomes, the effect of using telemedicine on sustainability, and cost effectiveness.