For older adults, a hospital admission or major surgery includes risk of developing delirium — a complication not only marked by confusion or agitation, but also associated with prolonged hospitalization, cognitive and functional decline, and increased mortality.
A new study led by the Hinda and Arthur Marcus Institute for Aging Research(link is external) at Hebrew SeniorLife, a Harvard Medical School affiliate, and the University of Michigan Medical School Department of Anesthesiology will test whether family caretaker support provided at the hospital bedside can reduce risk of delirium and its related complications and improve outcomes for patients and their families. The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI(link is external)) has approved $13.25 million in funding to support the study.
