Caring for Patients with Functional Impairment in Middle Age: Perspectives from Primary Care Providers and Geriatricians

Abstract

Background: The prevalence of functional impairment is increasing among middle-aged adults and is associated with adverse health outcomes. Primary care providers (PCPs) and geriatricians may have important insights about optimal approaches to caring for these patients, but little is known about their perspectives.

Objective: To examine PCPs' and geriatricians' perspectives on clinical needs and optimal approaches to care for middle-aged patients with functional impairment.

Design: Qualitative study using semi-structured interviews.

Participants: PCPs and geriatricians from outpatient practices in the San Francisco Bay area.

Approach: Interviews focused on characteristics and care needs of middle-aged patients with functional impairment and models of care to address these needs. We analyzed interviews using hybrid deductive-inductive qualitative thematic analysis.

Key results: Clinicians (14 PCPs, 15 geriatricians) described distinct characteristics of functional impairment in middle-aged versus older adults, such as different rates of onset, but similar clinical needs. Despite these similar needs, clinicians identified age-specific barriers to delivering optimal care to middle-aged patients. These included system-level challenges such as limited access to insurance and social services; practice- and clinician-level barriers including inadequate clinician training; and patient-level factors including less access to family caregivers and perceptions of stigma. To overcome these challenges, clinicians suggested clinical approaches including addressing health-related social needs within healthcare systems; implementing practice-based models that are multi-disciplinary, team-based, and coordinated; training clinicians to effectively manage functional impairment; and expanding community-based services and supports to help patients navigate the medical system. Identified needs, challenges, and solutions were generally similar across geriatricians and PCPs.

Conclusions: Clinicians face challenges in delivering optimal care to middle-aged patients who have functional impairments similar to their older counterparts but lack access to services and supports available to older people. These findings suggest the importance of increasing access to care models that address functional impairment regardless of age.

Keywords: activities of daily living; functional impairment; geriatrics.; primary care; qualitative research.