HEALTH OUTCOMES AMONG THE FRAIL ELDERLY IN COMMUNITIES AND INSTITUTIONS - USE OF THE MINIMUM-DATA-SET (MDS) TO CREATE EFFECTIVE LINKAGES BETWEEN RESEARCH AND POLICY

Researchers and policy-makers interested in the needs of the frail eld erly in community and institutional settings have had limited success in forming policy based on empirical evidence. The reasons for this ha ve included a variety of organizational and political considerations ( e.g., lack of effective communication mechanisms), conceptual and meth odological issues (e.g., problems with reliability and validity of exi sting data sources) and limitations in knowledge (e.g., lack of longit udinal data across health care sectors). The Minimum Data Set (MDS) se ries of instruments may prove useful in dealing with these difficultie s. The MDS instruments have multiple uses for different audiences (e.g ., care provision, funding and quality improvement). Extensive interna tional testing has shown the MDS to be valid and reliable, and transla tions are available in 11 different languages. As implementation of th e MDS begins in Canada, a number of new concerns will need to be addre ssed (e.g., confidentiality and access to data).