Health status and functional status in relationship to nursing home subacute rehabilitation program outcomes

Objective: To assess the relationship of health status and functional status to key nursing home subacute rehabilitation program outcomes: motor function at discharge, discharge destination, and length of stay in the program. Design: Using a prospective cohort study design, 164 patients were assessed on entering the rehabilitation program for the first time after discharge from an acute hospital. Their median length of stay was 40 days. Results: The patients' motor function improved over time (P < 0.0001), and a large majority were discharged to the community. At admission, health status was positively associated with motor function (P < 0.05) and cognitive function (P < 0.01). Higher cognitive function and higher motor function at admission were correlated with higher motor function at discharge (r_s = 0.386, P < 0.0001; r_s = 0.563, P < 0.0001 respectively). Better health status was independently associated with discharge to the community (P < 0.01). Only motor function at admission was independently associated with length of stay (P < 0.01). Conclusion: Health status and functional status are related, and both are independently associated with nursing home subacute rehabilitation program outcomes. Therefore, an improvement in one may result in an improvement in the other, and both aid in the attainment of positive subacute rehabilitation outcomes.