InterRAI-LTCF-assessed care needs study in elderly people with different levels of ability in geriatric nursing facilities

Aim: Sharing clinical information across care settings is a cornerstone to providing quality care to older people with complex conditions. The purpose of the present study was to examine the reliability of the interRAI Long Term Care Facilities (interRAI LTCF) and the interRAI Home Care (interRAI HC), comprehensive and integrated assessment instruments with common core items, in Korea, an Asian county where comprehensive geriatric assessment is not widely used in long-term care.Methods: The Korean version of the instruments was developed through field tests, as well as multiple iterations of translations, back-translations and expert reviews. For the reliability test, a random sample of 908 older people in 27 long-term care hospitals or nursing homes, or at home with home care, were assessed by regular staff, among which a subsample of 534 people were dually assessed. The Cronbach's alphas of seven major composite scales in the instruments were examined for internal consistency. Interrater reliability was tested using agreement, kappa coefficients and interclass correlation coefficients.Results: The internal consistencies of all key measures were adequate (Cronbach's alpha≥0.75). The overall mean kappa statistics of the items in the interRAI LTCF and those in the interRAI HC were 0.78 and 0.89, respectively. All key common items in the interRAI LTCF and the interRAI HC had almost perfect (κ≥0.81) or substantial (0.61≤κ≤0.80) interrater reliability.Conclusions: The findings show the interRAI LTCF and the interRAI HC have adequate reliability for assessing the function and health of frail older adults across various long-term settings, which can promote continuity of care for the aged.