Helping Seniors Plan for Posthospital Discharge Needs Before a Hospitalization Occurs: Results from the Randomized Control Trial of PlanYourLifespan.org.

OBJECTIVE: Investigate the effect of PlanYourLifespan.org (PYL) on knowledge of posthospital discharge options.

DESIGN: Multisite randomized controlled trial.

SETTING/PATIENTS: Nonhospitalized adults, aged =65 years, living in urban, suburban, and rural areas of Texas, Illinois, and Indiana.

INTERVENTION: PYL is a national, publicly available tool that provides education on posthospital therapy choices and local home-based resources.

MEASUREMENTS: Participants completed an in-person baseline survey, followed by exposure to intervention or attention control (AC) websites, then 1-month and 3-month telephone surveys. The primary knowledge outcome was measured with 6 items (possible 0-6 points) pertaining to hospital discharge needs.

RESULTS: Among 385 participants randomized, mean age was 71.9 years (standard deviation 5.6) and 79.5% of participants were female. At 1 month, the intervention group had a 0.6 point change (standard deviation = 1.6) versus the AC group who had a -0.1 point change in knowledge score. Linear mixed modeling results suggest sex, health literacy level, level of education, income, and history of high blood pressure/kidney disease were significant predictors of knowledge over time. Controlling for these variables, treatment effect remained significant (P < 0.0001).

CONCLUSIONS: Seniors who used PYL demonstrated an increased understanding of posthospitalization and home services compared to the control group.