No abstract

The TM/HBPC intervention improved most HR-QoL measures among terminally ill patients and satisfaction among non-terminally ill patients. It improved caregiver HR-QoL, satisfaction with care, and caregiver burden and reduced hospital readmissions at 6 months, but it did not substitute for other forms of care. The higher costs of TM/HBPC should be weighed against these benefits.

This study tested the cross-sectional relationship between caregiver burden and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) among 1,594 caregivers of veterans identified to qualify for formal home care. A two-stage model found that familial relationship, coresidence, and low income predicted objective burden. Coresidence also predicted subjective burden, whereas being African American was protective. In the full model, spousal relationship, low income, and burden were associated with poor HRQOL scores. Total variance explained in HRQOL ranged from 14% to 29%, with objective burden contributing more than subjective burden. These findings suggest a direct effect of objective burden on caregiver HRQOL, indicating a need among caregivers for assistance in caring for disabled family members.

This study compares migration patterns during four decades and profiles the demographic characteristics of veteran and nonveteran migrants ages 60 and older in 1990. A substantial increase in veteran migration was expected when World War II veterans retired. With minor exceptions, the top 10 destinations for veterans in the past two censuses are states in the Sunbelt and Pacific Northwest that are well-known for the attraction of their amenities. The nonveteran migrants show a much wider geographic range that includes the Sunbelt states as well as states in the Northeast and Midwest. The profile of migrant characteristics suggests that differences may be due, in part, to age and gender differences of veterans, who are younger, on average, and nearly all male. The life course migration model helps to put this finding in perspective.Interest in the geographic mobility of veterans began as a health care planning issue. This research issue is a good example of applied gerontology. The Department of Veterans Affairs operates the largest health care system in the United States under a single management structure. Veteran mobility, therefore,

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) operates and maintains one of the largest health care systems under a single management structure in the world. The coordination of administrative and clinical information on veterans served by the VA health care system is a daunting and critical function of the Department. This article provides an overview of VA Health Services Research and Development Service initiatives to assist researchers in using extant VA databases to study patient-centered health care outcomes. As examples, studies using the VA's Patient Treatment File (PTF) and the Beneficiary Identification and Records Locator System (BIRLS) Death File are described.