Abstract

With the world's population aging, hospitals are facing pressure to adequately meet the needs of a growing number of frail older patients. For this population, comorbidities combined with a limited ability to face stressful situations contribute to frailty whereby a small injury or illness can lead to significant loss of function. It is widely recognized that hospitalized older patients are more vulnerable to physical or cognitive functional decline and require increased assistance in activities of daily living (Creditor 1993; Sager et al. 1996; Mahoney, Sager, and Jalaluddin 1998; Kortebein et al. 2008; English and PaddonJones 2010; Covinsky, Pierluissi, and Johnston 2011; Zisberg et al. 2011;...