MULTICENTER VALIDATION OF MINIGERON, A SI MPLIFIED TOOL FOR ASSESSINGPATIENTS IN EXTENDED STAY GERIATRIC WARDS - A STUDY IN 804 PATIENTS

Administration of scales used to evaluate self-sufficiency in extended -stay geriatric ward patients is often difficult and time-consuming. T he Minigeron is a new ten-item scale for rapidly evaluating self-suffi ciency in elderly patients. Each item is scored from 0 to 2. A multice nter study in 804 elderly patients was conducted to validate the Minig eron scale versus Geronte III. The two scales were administered at clo se intervals, although not simultaneously. Systematic and random verif ications of data collection and entry in the computerized data base we re carried out. Correlations were determined using linear regression a nd step-wise regression. Overall scores were closely correlated. The t en Minigeron items explored 97 % of functions evaluated by the Geronte scale. Ten Geronte items accounted for 99 % of the evaluation. Based on this multicenter study, the Minigeron scale is an easy-to-administe r, rapid tool for evaluating extended-stay geriatric ward patients.