Home Based Care Transitions Tailored by Cognition and Patient Activation

There is overwhelming evidence that patients with multiple chronic illnesses need better self-management skills. Discharge from the hospital may not be the most opportune time to be teaching patients these self-management skills. There are several different care transition models being used across the country; however we know that not every patient needs the same type or amount of an intervention. The purpose of this pilot study is to study the impact delivering a home based care transitions intervention (HBCTI) with four different groups tailored on cognition and level of patient activation compared to usual care (UC) resulting in 8 study arms on the outcomes of health care utilization (HCU) and health outcomes: patient-reported health status, assessment of care for chronic conditions, and health related quality of life in adult patients with multiple chronic diseases dismissed to home from an acute care facility. Our working hypothesis is that patients in the HBCTI groups compared to the UC groups will have lower HCU and improved outcomes (patient-reported health status, assessment of care for chronic conditions, and health related quality of life).