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Physician Consultation, Multidisciplinary Care, and 1‐Year Mortality in Medicare Recipients Hospitalized with Hip and Lower Extremity Injuries
Author(s) -
Adams Annette L.,
Schiff Melissa A.,
Koepsell Thomas D.,
Rivara Frederick P.,
Leroux Brian G.,
Becker Thomas M.,
Hedges Jerris R.
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
journal of the american geriatrics society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.992
H-Index - 232
eISSN - 1532-5415
pISSN - 0002-8614
DOI - 10.1111/j.1532-5415.2010.03087.x
Subject(s) - medicine , orthopedic surgery , odds ratio , comorbidity , hip fracture , emergency medicine , retrospective cohort study , odds , multidisciplinary approach , medical record , rehabilitation , confidence interval , physical therapy , family medicine , surgery , logistic regression , osteoporosis , social science , sociology
OBJECTIVE: To determine whether routine surgeon consultation with medicine specialists and multidisciplinary care conferences—potentially modifiable hospital characteristics—are associated with lower 1‐year mortality in older adults with hip and lower extremity injuries. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study. SETTING: Oregon hospitals. PARTICIPANTS: Two thousand five hundred thirty‐eight Medicare recipients aged 67 and older hospitalized in Oregon hospitals in 2002 with hip or lower extremity injuries. MEASUREMENTS: Demographic, injury, comorbidity, and survival information were gathered from Medicare records for 2000 to 2003. All Oregon hospitals with a qualifying case were surveyed using a structured telephone interview to collect information about routine surgeon consultations and multidisciplinary care conferences for older adult orthopedic patients. Multivariable generalized estimating equation models were used to estimate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for the associations between hospital characteristics and mortality. RESULTS: After adjusting for age, injury severity, comorbid conditions, trauma center status, and hospital annual volume of patients with hip fracture, the relative odds of dying in the year after injury for inpatients treated in settings with routine surgeon consultation with medical staff was 0.69 (95% CI 0.57–0.83) compared with patients not treated in such settings. Inpatient treatment in settings with routine multidisciplinary care conferences did not significantly affect the relative odds of dying in the year after injury (OR=1.06, 95% CI=0.89–1.26). CONCLUSION: Routine consultation by attending orthopedic surgeons with medicine or primary care specialists for Medicare inpatients is associated with better survival 1 year after injury.