PILOT EXPERIENCE WITH AN AMBULATORY GERIA TRIC ASSESSMENT INSTRUMENT

Background: Ten percent of the Chilean population is over 60 years old and general practitioners need an instrument to assess the degree of disability and multiple ailments of elders. Aim: To develop and use an instrument to assess elders consulting in primary care outpatient cli nics. Patients and methods: An instrument to be used by general practi tioners, aimed to assess bio-psico-social risk of elders was devised b y the Geriatrics Program at the Faculty of Medicine of the Catholic Un iversity of Chile. The instrument was used in 100 elders (82 female) a ged 71+/-8 years old consulting in a primary care outpatient clinic. R esults: The instrument took less than 5 minutes to be used. The most f requent risk factors found were living alone in 62% of subjects, falls in the last year in 47%, memory disturbances in 62%, overweight in 76 %, visual impairment in 76%, urinary incontinence in 26% and depressio n in 76%. Thirty percent had difficulties to climb stairs and 4% had n o support in case of severe disability. Conclusions: The applied instr ument is fast to apply, easily understood by patients and detect probl ems associated with old age, that will help to plan primary care healt h programs.