The Effect of Adult Day Program Attendance on Emergency Room Registrations, Hospital Admissions, and Days in Hospital: A Propensity-Matching Study

Purpose of the Study: This study is an investigation of the effect of adult day program attendance by home care clients 65 years of age and older on numbers and rates of emergency room registrations, hospital admissions, and days in hospital. Design and Methods: Each adult day program attendee was matched to a single unique nonattendee (n = 812) on the basis of similar propensity scores which had been estimated from 19 demographic, psychosocial, clinical, and functional covariates. Evaluation of the propensity-matching procedure indicated that balance had been achieved on the covariates. Results: Subsequent analyses revealed significantly lower mean 100-day rates of emergency room registrations, hospital admissions, and days in hospitals for attendees, compared to matched nonattendees. Although lower rates were largely attributable to longer stays in the home care program for attendees, attendees' mean number of days in hospital was still significantly lower compared to nonattendees. Implications: Findings replicate and extend results from previous research that reported a decreased reliance on costly health care services by seniors who attend adult day programs.